New Delhi: Two direct questions on Adani Group, four on the Dhamra Port owned by the conglomerate, five on Kolkata Port Trust where the Hiranandani Group has business interests, and one on H-Energy, which is the company’s energy unit — these are 12 of the 62 questions that Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra has asked in the Lok Sabha since getting elected in 2019.
In a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on 15 October, BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, relying on allegations made by advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, alleged that Moitra had asked many of these questions at the behest of the Hiranandani Group, with the “intent of protecting or perpetuating its business interests”.
Moitra, who represents West Bengal’s Krishnanagar constituency, has rejected the charges, terming them “defamatory, false, baseless”.
Birla has referred the matter to the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee, which has called both Dubey and Dehadrai to depose before it on 26 October.
In a complaint filed with the CBI, Dehadrai has claimed that as many as “50 questions” asked by Moitra “are related directly to the business and personal interests of Darshan Hiranandani, CEO of the group”.
On Thursday, Darshan Hiranandani, who resides in Dubai, submitted an affidavit to the committee, claiming that Moitra, who “has been a close personal friend of mine”, had shared her Parliament portal login ID and password “so that I could post the questions directly on her behalf when required”. Moitra dismissed Darshan’s affidavit as a “joke”, alleging that it was scripted by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).
ThePrint reviewed all 62 questions asked by the TMC MP. Apart from those mentioned above, her questions revolved around the MSME (micro, small and medium enterprises) sector, the impact of Covid on the insurance sector, air pollution, stray cattle, MSP to farmers, data protection, and unmanned railway crossings, among other topics.
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On Adani and Hiranandani
Of the two questions on the Adani Group, one was about “details of ultimate beneficial ownership of Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs) owning stake in Adani Group companies”.
The question, answered on 19 July 2021 the Ministry of Finance, also sought to know “whether the FPIs and/or Adani entities are under investigation by SEBI, IT, ED, DRI, MCA for suspicious transactions”.
The second question that specifically named Adani was answered on 5 August 2021 by the Ministry of Civil Aviation as it pertained to the Airports Authority of India (AAI) awarding six airports under the PPP model to an arm of the business group.
She also asked four questions on the Dhamra Port, which was acquired by the Adani Group in 2014.
In her first question as an MP, which was answered on 8 July 2019, Moitra sought to know the reason behind GAIL and IOCL signing an MoU with the Adani Group to set up a gas terminal at Dhamra instead of Paradip, which was also considered initially.
Hiranandani Group subsidiary H-Energy had in 2016 won bids to construct and manage a natural gas pipeline from West Bengal’s Contai to Odisha’s Paradip Port.
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas responded that setting up two LNG terminals in such close proximity would not be commercially viable, adding that the GAIL-IOCL-Adani MoU had also expired and that the government had made no capital expenditure on the project.
Her second question, answered on 18 November 2019, was also on Dhamra Port. She asked “whether the GAIL and IOCL have booked capacity or signed Memorandum of Understanding to book capacity in Dhamra LNG Terminal belonging to a private entity” and related details.
H-Energy also finds mention in one of her questions, where she sought to know whether the company, IOCL and GAIL had been granted approvals by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Regulatory Board (PNGRB) to build a natural gas pipeline through West Bengal to the Bangladesh border.
“PNGRB has granted authorisation in July 2019 to Hoogly (sic) Pipelines Private Limited (earlier known as H-Energy Private Limited) for laying, building, operating or expanding natural gas pipeline emanating from Kanai Chhata (West Bengal) and terminating near Bangladesh border at Shrirampur (West Bengal),” the Ministry of External Affairs respond on 4 August 2021 in the Lok Sabha.
“Further, PNGRB has accepted the central government authorisation issued to GAIL for Jagdishpur-Haldia-Bokaro-Dhamra Pipeline (JHBDPL) which also covers West Bengal,” it added.
Kolkata Port Trust, an autonomous body under the Union government, is another recurring subject in her questions.
In February 2021, the Kolkata port had signed an MoU with the Hiranandani Group for building an LNG terminal. Her questions on the port ranged from its revenue and cargo-handling capacity, to future development plans.
Dubey and Dehadrai have listed several other questions, claiming those were also allegedly dictated by the Hiranandani Group. But many of those questions have no apparent connection with either the Adani Group or the Hiranandani Group.
For instance, a question on the quality of telecom service provided in India has been put in the same category by Dehadrai, citing the Hiranandani Group’s presence in the data sector through its company Yotta.
‘PMO held gun to their heads’
In a press statement issued Thursday evening, Moitra questioned Darshan Hiranandani’s submission to the ethics committee, suggesting that he was forced to put it out.
“The PMO held a proverbial gun to Darshan and his father’s heads and gave them 20 minutes to sign this letter sent to them,” she said.
“They were threatened with a total shutdown of all their businesses. His father is in real estate, which depends on government licences. And he is in energy, data centres and semiconductor chip manufacturing, which too depends on government licences,” she added, saying he “has over 30,000 crore investments in UP alone”.
“They were told they will be finished, the CBI would raid them and all government business would stop and all PS (public sector) bank financing would be stopped immediately. The draft of this letter was sent by the PMO and he was forced to sign it,” she said.
(Edited by Sunanda Ranjan)
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