Letting off Bidhuri but summoning TMC MP Mahua shows Centre's double standards: Mani Shankar Aiyar

Patna, Nov 5 (PTI) Senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar on Sunday alleged that the summoning of TMC MP Mahua Moitra by the Ethics Committee of Parliament over the cash-for-query row and no strict action against BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri for objectionable remark in Lok Sabha show ‘double standards’ on part of the Centre.

He also claimed that the country has been passing through a very "critical stage" and that democracy is in "danger".

Aiyar was speaking here at the launch of former chief election commissioner S Y Quraishi's book, 'India’s Experiment with Democracy-The Life of Nation Through Its Elections'.

"The spirit of the Indian Constitution must be protected. Each of our three pillars of democracy--the legislative, executive and judiciary--needs to remain strong. They constitute not only the form of parliamentary democracy but also its spirit. But it’s not happening. The current dispensation at the Centre is adopting a different approach or has double standards in dealing with TMC’s Mahua Moitra and BJP’s Ramesh Bidhuri…why?" Aiyar, the former union minister, said.

Moitra had on November 2 appeared before the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee in connection with the cash-for-query allegations against her. The TMC MP walked out of the hearing over the nature of questions being asked.

Bidhuri, the BJP MP from South Delhi, had faced strong criticism over his derogatory comments against BSP MP Danish Ali in Lok Sabha.

“Bidhuri is busy in BJP’s election campaign in different states. But Moitra was forced to appear before the Ethics Committee. I must say that electorates will have to remain cautious and alert in the coming Lok Sabha polls…they must cast their votes in the 2024 polls after a proper thought," the veteran Congress leader said.

Speaking at the book launch, Quraishi disapproved of the concept of ‘one nation, one election’, and said, “In a country like India, this theory cannot work at all. This issue was raised earlier, but it was not accepted”. PTI