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Cash-for-Query Scandal: A Timeline of India’s Political Row (2005–2026)

📅 Last updated: 31 October 2026📖 24 dated entries, 2005–2026✎ By Nazish Fatima

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In short

Cash-for-query scandal timeline: the 2005 Operation Duryodhana sting that got 11 MPs expelled, to the Mahua Moitra case in the Supreme Court in 2026.

Latest Story

The cash-for-query scandal began on 12 December 2005, when a hidden-camera sting called Operation Duryodhana showed 11 Indian MPs allegedly accepting money to ask questions in Parliament. Eleven days later both Houses expelled all of them, and in 2007 the Supreme Court upheld Parliament’s power to do so. In 2023 a separate case against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra brought the term back, leading to her expulsion, a CBI investigation and a Lokpal dispute that is still before the Supreme Court in 2026.

The circular old Parliament House in New Delhi, where both Houses expelled 11 MPs in December 2005
The old Parliament House in New Delhi, where both Houses expelled the 11 MPs on 23 December 2005. Photo: Nikhilb239, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.

💡 Short Answer

The cash-for-query scandal was a 2005 sting by Cobrapost, broadcast on Aaj Tak, in which 11 MPs from the BJP, BSP, RJD and Congress allegedly took money to table questions. Parliament expelled all 11 on 23 December 2005, and the Supreme Court upheld the expulsions in 2007. A court ordered their trial in 2017. The separate 2023 Mahua Moitra case led to her expulsion and a Lokpal sanction fight that is pending.

⚡ Cash-for-Query at a Glance
Sting broadcast12 December 2005, Aaj Tak
MPs expelled11 (10 Lok Sabha, 1 Rajya Sabha)
Expulsion date23 December 2005, both Houses
Supreme Court ruling10 January 2007, upheld 4-1
Trial ordered10 August 2017
Moitra caseExpelled 8 Dec 2023; Lokpal appeal pending
⚡ Quick Answers — AI Overview Ready

Cash-for-Query Scandal: Key Questions

What was the cash-for-query scandal?
A 2005 hidden-camera sting, Operation Duryodhana, by Cobrapost journalists posing as lobbyists. Aaj Tak broadcast footage on 12 December 2005 that allegedly showed 11 MPs accepting money to ask questions in Parliament.
What happened to the 11 MPs?
The Lok Sabha expelled 10 and the Rajya Sabha one on 23 December 2005. The Supreme Court upheld the expulsions on 10 January 2007, and a Delhi court ordered in August 2017 that they stand trial for corruption.
How is the Mahua Moitra case different?
It began in 2023 with a complaint, not a sting. Moitra was accused of taking gifts from businessman Darshan Hiranandani and sharing her parliamentary login. She admitted sharing the login, denied taking cash, was expelled and was re-elected in 2024.
What is the latest in 2026?
The Supreme Court is hearing the Lokpal’s appeal against a Delhi High Court ruling that set aside its sanction for a CBI chargesheet against Moitra. It stayed part of that ruling in March 2026 and adjourned the case on 1 September 2026.
📚 Key Takeaways

The Cash-for-Query Cases in Nine Points

  • The sting: Cobrapost’s Operation Duryodhana, broadcast on Aaj Tak on 12 December 2005.
  • The accused: 11 MPs, six BJP, three BSP, one RJD and one Congress; 10 in the Lok Sabha, one in the Rajya Sabha.
  • The speed: both Houses expelled all 11 on 23 December 2005, 11 days after the broadcast.
  • The precedent: the Supreme Court upheld the expulsions 4-1 on 10 January 2007.
  • The reporters: charged with abetment in 2009, cleared by the Delhi High Court in September 2010.
  • The trial: charges ordered against the 11 former MPs on 10 August 2017, not a conviction.
  • The second case: Mahua Moitra was expelled on 8 December 2023 over her login and gifts from Darshan Hiranandani.
  • The law changed: in March 2024 the Supreme Court ruled that privilege never protects a legislator who takes a bribe.
  • Still open: the Lokpal’s sanction to prosecute Moitra is before the Supreme Court; nothing has been proved in court.

Cash-for-Query Scandal: Complete Timeline, Latest First

From the Supreme Court in 2026 back to the 2005 sting. Each entry is colour-coded, so parliamentary action and the separate criminal process stay distinct: an expulsion is not a conviction.

2005 sting in ParliamentMoitra case in Parliament, 2023–24Courts, police, CBI & Lokpal
1 Sep 2026

Supreme Court adjourns the Lokpal’s appeals Courts & agencies

Supreme Court of IndiaMoitra casePending

What happened: A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana adjourned the two appeals filed by the Lokpal after noting that the Union government was not represented. The court gave the Centre one more opportunity to file a counter affidavit, if it wished to.

Where it stands: As of 31 October 2026 we found no report of a further hearing or a judgment. The CBI has not filed a chargesheet against Mahua Moitra, and no court has ruled on whether the allegations against her are true.

Why it matters: The legal question, how the Lokpal grants sanction, is still undecided more than a year after the sanction order.
24 Jul 2026

Home Ministry made a party to the appeals Courts & agencies

Supreme Court of IndiaMoitra case

What happened: The Supreme Court added the Ministry of Home Affairs as a party to the Lokpal’s appeals, so the Union government could put its view on how the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act should be read.

Why it matters: The case has become a test of the Lokpal’s procedure in general, not only of the sanction in Moitra’s case.

Why it matters: A ruling will affect every future Lokpal prosecution of a public servant.
13 Mar 2026

Supreme Court issues notice on the Lokpal’s appeal Courts & agencies

Supreme Court of IndiaCJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya BagchiInterim order

What happened: Hearing the Lokpal’s appeal against the Delhi High Court judgment of December 2025, the Supreme Court issued notice to Mahua Moitra, the CBI and BJP MP Nishikant Dubey. The bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi agreed to examine whether the High Court had read the Lokpal’s powers correctly.

The interim order: The court stayed the High Court’s direction (paragraph 89 of its judgment) that the Lokpal reconsider sanction within one month, so that direction did not have to be complied with for the time being. In effect the next step against Moitra was put on hold while the court examines the law.

The legal issue: How Sections 20(7) and 20(8) of the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013 work: whether the Lokpal may give separate sanction for the CBI to file a chargesheet, or must decide sanction for prosecution in a single composite order.

What it was not: This was an interim order. It is not a finding on whether Moitra did anything wrong.

Why it matters: The Supreme Court froze the case at the point of sanction while it settles the law.
19 Dec 2025

Delhi High Court sets aside the Lokpal’s sanction Courts & agencies

Delhi High CourtMoitra’s petition

What happened: A Division Bench of Justices Anil Kshetarpal and Harish Vaidyanathan Shankar set aside the Lokpal’s order of 12 November 2025. It held that the Act does not contemplate a separate sanction just for filing a chargesheet, and directed the Lokpal to decide the question of sanction afresh within one month, after considering Moitra’s submissions.

Moitra’s argument: She had argued that the Lokpal had not properly considered her written and oral response before granting sanction.

What it was not: The ruling concerned the legality of the sanction procedure. It did not decide the truth of the allegations.

Why it matters: The court did not clear Moitra; it sent the Lokpal back to redo the step.
12 Nov 2025

Lokpal sanctions a CBI chargesheet against Moitra Courts & agencies

Lokpal of IndiaSection 20, Lokpal Act

What happened: The Lokpal granted the CBI sanction to file a chargesheet against Mahua Moitra in the cash-for-query case, after considering the CBI’s investigation report and Moitra’s response to it.

Next step: Moitra challenged the order in the Delhi High Court within days. No chargesheet was filed while the challenge was pending.

Why it matters: For the first time in the case, a body outside Parliament cleared the way to prosecute.

CBI submits its investigation report to the Lokpal Courts & agencies

CBIReport to Lokpal

What happened: The CBI completed its investigation into Moitra and businessman Darshan Hiranandani and submitted its report to the Lokpal, which then had to decide whether to allow prosecution.

Why the Lokpal decides: Because the case started on a Lokpal reference, the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act gives the ombudsman, not the government, the power to sanction the next step.

Why it matters: The decision on prosecution moved from the investigators to the ombudsman.
4 Jun 2024

Moitra re-elected to the Lok Sabha Moitra in Parliament

Krishnanagar, West BengalGeneral election

What happened: Six months after her expulsion, Mahua Moitra won the Krishnanagar seat again as the Trinamool Congress candidate in the 2024 general election and returned to the 18th Lok Sabha.

Why it was possible: Expulsion ends membership of the current House only. It is not a disqualification from contesting, and Moitra had not been convicted of any offence.

Why it matters: Voters returned an MP whom the previous Lok Sabha had expelled.
19-21 Mar 2024

Lokpal orders a CBI investigation; CBI registers an FIR Courts & agencies

Lokpal of IndiaCBI

What happened: On 19 March 2024 the Lokpal directed the CBI to investigate all aspects of the allegations and report within six months, saying a deeper probe was needed after the CBI’s preliminary inquiry. On 21 March the CBI registered an FIR against Moitra and Darshan Hiranandani under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and searched her premises in Kolkata and elsewhere two days later.

The preliminary inquiry: The CBI’s preliminary inquiry had begun in November 2023 on a Lokpal reference. Moitra said the action was politically motivated and denied taking any bribe.

Why it matters: The case became a criminal investigation, separate from the expulsion.
4 Mar 2024

Supreme Court ends legislators’ immunity for taking bribes Courts & agencies

Supreme Court of IndiaSita Soren v. Union of India

What happened: A seven-judge Constitution Bench unanimously overruled the 1998 judgment in P.V. Narasimha Rao v. State, which had held that MPs who took bribes to vote in Parliament were protected by parliamentary privilege.

The rule now: Parliamentary privilege under Articles 105 and 194 does not protect a legislator who takes a bribe to vote or speak in a certain way. The offence is complete when the bribe is accepted, whether or not the vote or speech follows.

Why it matters here: It removed any argument that the speech-and-vote privilege shields a member accused of taking money to ask questions.

Why it matters: A bribe for a parliamentary act is now plainly a crime, not a privilege.
3 Jan 2024

Supreme Court issues notice on Moitra’s petition against expulsion Courts & agencies

Supreme Court of IndiaWrit petition

What happened: Moitra challenged her expulsion under Article 32. The Supreme Court sought a reply from the Lok Sabha Secretary General but refused her interim request to attend the House while the case was pending.

The government’s position: The Lok Sabha Secretariat argued that the petition was not maintainable because the court cannot interfere in the internal proceedings of Parliament, relying on the Raja Ram Pal line of cases.

Status: We found no final judgment on the petition. Her re-election in June 2024 restored her to the House by another route.

Why it matters: The 2007 precedent from the 2005 scandal was cited back at a new expelled MP.
8 Dec 2023

Lok Sabha expels Mahua Moitra Moitra in Parliament

New Parliament buildingVoice voteOpposition walkout

What happened: The Ethics Committee’s report was tabled, and the same day the Lok Sabha adopted a motion moved by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi to expel Moitra for “unethical conduct”. The motion passed by voice vote after opposition members walked out.

The findings: The committee held that she had shared her Lok Sabha login credentials with Darshan Hiranandani, letting him post questions, and had accepted gifts and benefits from him. It recommended a time-bound legal investigation by the government.

Moitra’s response: She was not allowed to speak in the debate. She called the expulsion a punishment for something not covered by any rule, denied taking cash, and said the committee had no evidence of money changing hands.

Why it matters: Eighteen years after 2005, the Lok Sabha again expelled a member over cash-for-query allegations.
The Lok Sabha chamber in India's new Parliament building, where Mahua Moitra was expelled in December 2023
The Lok Sabha chamber in the new Parliament building, where the House expelled Mahua Moitra on 8 December 2023. Photo: Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, via Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India.
9 Nov 2023

Ethics Committee adopts its report Moitra in Parliament

Lok Sabha Ethics CommitteeChair: Vinod Kumar Sonkar

What happened: The committee, chaired by BJP MP Vinod Kumar Sonkar, adopted its report recommending Moitra’s expulsion. Opposition members filed dissent notes saying the inquiry was conducted with “unseemly haste” and without cross-examination of Hiranandani.

Why it matters: The report made the case a vote in the House, not a matter for the courts.
2 Nov 2023

Moitra appears before the Ethics Committee and walks out Moitra in Parliament

Parliament House AnnexeHearing

What happened: Moitra appeared before the committee. She and opposition members on the panel walked out midway, saying the chairman’s questions about her personal life and travel were irrelevant and degrading. The chairman said she had refused to answer.

Her admission: Moitra had already said publicly that she shared her parliamentary login with Hiranandani so his office could type in her questions, and that the questions were her own. She said this was a common practice and that no rule forbade it.

Why it matters: The dispute shifted from bribery to the rules on sharing parliamentary logins.
19 Oct 2023

Hiranandani’s affidavit surfaces Moitra in Parliament

Signed statementDubai

What happened: An affidavit signed by Darshan Hiranandani, chief executive of the Hiranandani Group, was sent to the Ethics Committee. In it he said Moitra had given him her parliamentary login to post questions, many targeting the Adani Group, and that she had asked him for favours including luxury gifts and help with travel and a Delhi bungalow.

The dispute: Moitra questioned the affidavit’s credibility. She said it was on plain paper without a letterhead or notarisation and claimed it had been drafted under pressure from the Prime Minister’s Office. The committee did not call Hiranandani to be cross-examined, a point the opposition raised in its dissent.

Why it matters: Hiranandani’s account became the core of the case against Moitra, and the part she disputed most.
15 Oct 2023

Nishikant Dubey writes to the Speaker Moitra in Parliament

Letter to Om BirlaComplaint to CBI

What happened: BJP MP Nishikant Dubey wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, citing evidence from Supreme Court advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai, a former associate of Moitra, alleging that she had taken cash and gifts from Hiranandani to ask questions. He said nearly 50 of her 61 questions served Hiranandani’s business interests, and sought her suspension.

Next steps: Dehadrai filed a complaint with the CBI, and Dubey also approached the Lokpal. The Speaker referred the complaint to the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee.

Moitra’s reply: She denied taking money, welcomed any inquiry and filed a defamation suit in the Delhi High Court against Dubey and Dehadrai.

Why it matters: A complaint from a fellow MP began a second cash-for-query case, 18 years after the first.
10 Aug 2017

Court orders charges against 11 former MPs Courts & agencies

Special court, DelhiPrevention of Corruption Act

What happened: A special court in Delhi ordered that charges of corruption under the Prevention of Corruption Act and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code be framed against the 11 former MPs. It also ordered charges against Ravinder Kumar, who had worked for one of the MPs. Proceedings against one accused who had died were dropped.

What it was: An order to put the accused on trial, nearly 12 years after the sting. It was not a conviction, and every accused was presumed innocent until a verdict.

Since then: We found no reported verdict in the trial as of October 2026.

Why it matters: The parliamentary punishment came in 11 days; the criminal case took 12 years just to reach trial.
24 Sep 2010

High Court quashes the case against the sting journalists Courts & agencies

Delhi High CourtJustice S.N. Dhingra

What happened: Justice S.N. Dhingra set aside the trial court’s order of 6 July 2009 that had summoned Cobrapost journalists Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj as accused. The police had charged them with abetting bribery because they had handed money to the MPs.

The reasoning: The court held that the journalists had no criminal intent: they offered money to expose corruption, not to obtain any favour. Prosecuting them would discourage others from exposing wrongdoing.

What continued: The case against the MPs went on separately.

Why it matters: The court protected the method of the sting, not just its result.
6 Jul 2009

Trial court takes cognisance of the police chargesheet Courts & agencies

Delhi courtDelhi Police chargesheet

What happened: A Delhi court took cognisance of the Delhi Police chargesheet in the cash-for-query case and summoned the accused, including the former MPs and the two journalists who carried out the sting.

The charge against the journalists: The police said that by offering money they had abetted the offence. The journalists argued that the sting was conducted to expose corruption, not to commit it, and challenged the summons in the High Court.

Why it matters: Four years after the sting, the reporters stood in the same dock as the MPs they exposed.
10 Jan 2007

Supreme Court upholds the expulsions Courts & agencies

Supreme Court of IndiaRaja Ram Pal v. Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha

What happened: A five-judge Constitution Bench headed by Chief Justice Y.K. Sabharwal ruled 4-1 that each House of Parliament has the power to expel a member for conduct that lowers its dignity, as part of its privileges under Article 105(3). Justice R.V. Raveendran dissented.

Judicial review: The court did not put Parliament beyond review. It held that courts may examine privilege decisions for gross illegality, irrationality, violation of constitutional mandates or of fundamental rights, while respecting the House’s domain.

The petitioners: The case is named after Raja Ram Pal, one of the 10 expelled Lok Sabha members. The challenges by all 11 were heard together and dismissed.

Why it matters: This is still the leading judgment on Parliament’s power to expel its members.
Domed central wing of the Supreme Court of India in New Delhi seen across a lawn
The Supreme Court of India, which upheld the expulsions in January 2007 and is now hearing the Lokpal’s appeal in the Moitra case. Photo: Subhashish Panigrahi, via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped and resized.
23 Dec 2005

Parliament expels all 11 MPs 2005 in Parliament

Lok Sabha and Rajya SabhaSame day

Lok Sabha: Leader of the House and Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee moved the motion to expel the 10 Lok Sabha members named in the sting. It was adopted by voice vote. The BJP, which had six of the accused, walked out before the vote.

Rajya Sabha: On the same day the Rajya Sabha adopted its Ethics Committee’s report, chaired by Karan Singh, and expelled Chhatarpal Singh Lodha of the BJP. Sharad Joshi was the lone dissenter.

Scale: No Indian Parliament had expelled so many members at once. It came 11 days after the broadcast.

Why it matters: Parliament punished its own members across party lines in under two weeks.
Official portrait of Pranab Mukherjee, who moved the 2005 expulsion motion as Leader of the Lok Sabha
Pranab Mukherjee, who as Leader of the Lok Sabha moved the expulsion motion on 23 December 2005 (official portrait, 2012). Photo: President’s Secretariat, via Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India.
22 Dec 2005

The Bansal committee report is tabled 2005 in Parliament

Lok SabhaInquiry committee

What happened: The five-member Lok Sabha committee chaired by Pawan Kumar Bansal tabled its report. It found the evidence against the 10 Lok Sabha members convincing and their conduct unbecoming of members, and recommended their expulsion.

The process: The committee had examined the unedited footage, heard the journalists and given the MPs a chance to respond. Several of the accused said the footage was doctored or that they had been entrapped.

Why it matters: The committee recommended the harshest punishment available to the House.
19 Dec 2005

A second sting: Operation Chakravyuh 2005 in Parliament

Star NewsMPLADS commission

What happened: A week after Operation Duryodhana, Star News broadcast a separate sting, Operation Chakravyuh, which showed seven MPs, five from the Lok Sabha and two from the Rajya Sabha, allegedly agreeing to take a commission for sanctioning work under the MP Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS).

Not the same case: This sting concerned development funds, not parliamentary questions. It was examined separately, and it is not part of the 11 expulsions.

Why it matters: Two stings in one week deepened the crisis of credibility for Parliament.
12 Dec 2005

Operation Duryodhana is broadcast 2005 in Parliament

Aaj Tak and CobrapostHidden camera

What happened: Aaj Tak broadcast footage from a Cobrapost sting, Operation Duryodhana, that showed 11 MPs allegedly accepting cash to ask questions in Parliament. The amounts were small, reported at between Rs 15,000 and Rs 1.1 lakh per MP.

Parliament’s response the same day: Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee called the episode shameful, asked the 10 Lok Sabha members not to attend the House and set up an inquiry committee under Pawan Kumar Bansal. Rajya Sabha Chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat referred the case of Chhatarpal Singh Lodha to the House’s Ethics Committee.

The accused: Six were from the BJP, three from the BSP, one from the RJD and one from the Congress.

Why it matters: Television showed MPs taking money on camera for the first time.
Portrait of Somnath Chatterjee, Lok Sabha Speaker during the 2005 cash-for-query scandal
Somnath Chatterjee, Lok Sabha Speaker from 2004 to 2009, who set up the inquiry on the day of the broadcast (photographed 2008). Photo: Vice President’s Secretariat, via Wikimedia Commons, GODL-India.

How the sting was set up 2005 in Parliament

CobrapostAniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj

What happened: Cobrapost journalists Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj posed as representatives of a fictitious lobby group, the North Indian Small Manufacturers Association (NISMA). Over several months they approached MPs directly and through middlemen, offering money for questions to be tabled in Parliament.

What was recorded: Hidden cameras captured conversations about payments and the questions to be asked. Several of the questions were in fact submitted to Parliament.

Why it matters: Questions, Parliament’s main tool to hold ministers to account, turned out to be for sale.

Who Were the 11 MPs Expelled in the 2005 Scandal?

Four parties, two Houses. The amounts are as widely reported from the footage; the parliamentary findings were not a criminal conviction.

PartyMPs named in the 2005 stingNumber
BJPY. G. Mahajan, Chhatarpal Singh Lodha, Annasaheb M. K. Patil, Chandra Pratap Singh, Pradeep Gandhi, Suresh Chandel6
BSPNarendra Kumar Kushwaha, Lal Chandra Kol, Raja Ram Pal3
RJDManoj Kumar1
CongressRam Sewak Singh1
Total10 Lok Sabha + 1 Rajya Sabha11
Bar chart of the 11 MPs named in the 2005 Operation Duryodhana sting and the amounts reported on camera, coloured by party
The 11 MPs named in Operation Duryodhana and the sums reported from the footage. Chart by AiTimeline from reported figures.
MPPartyConstituency / stateHouseAmount reported (Rs)
Y. G. MahajanBJPJalgaon, MaharashtraLok Sabha35,000
Annasaheb M. K. PatilBJPErandol, MaharashtraLok Sabha45,000
Chandra Pratap SinghBJPSidhi, Madhya PradeshLok Sabha35,000
Pradeep GandhiBJPRajnandgaon, ChhattisgarhLok Sabha55,000
Suresh ChandelBJPHamirpur, Himachal PradeshLok Sabha30,000
Chhatarpal Singh LodhaBJPOdishaRajya Sabha15,000
Narendra Kumar KushwahaBSPMirzapur, Uttar PradeshLok Sabha55,000
Raja Ram PalBSPBilhaur, Uttar PradeshLok Sabha35,000
Lal Chandra KolBSPRobertsganj, Uttar PradeshLok Sabha35,000
Manoj KumarRJDPalamau, JharkhandLok Sabha1,10,000
Ram Sewak SinghCongressGwalior, Madhya PradeshLok Sabha50,000

Why Was the Cash-for-Query Scandal So Significant?

1. Parliamentary questions are an accountability tool

Question Hour is how MPs extract information from ministers and put it on the public record. The 2005 sting suggested that this tool could be bought by anyone with a few thousand rupees, which is why the reaction was so sharp. The floor of the House has exposed wrongdoing before: the Mundhra scandal of 1957-58 was first raised there by Feroze Gandhi.

2. It crossed party lines

The 11 MPs came from the BJP, the BSP, the RJD and the Congress, so no party could treat the scandal as its opponents’ problem. That helped Parliament act quickly.

3. Parliament used its harshest power

Expelling 11 members at once was unprecedented. It raised hard questions: should a House act on video evidence without a criminal trial, and should the accused be heard in the House itself?

4. The Supreme Court defined Parliament’s authority

The Raja Ram Pal judgment of 2007 confirmed the power to expel, but held that privilege decisions are not entirely beyond judicial review. That balance was tested again when Moitra challenged her own expulsion.

5. It tested the law on sting journalism

The police charged the reporters as well as the MPs. The Delhi High Court’s 2010 ruling that they lacked criminal intent remains a reference point for undercover reporting, which grew in Indian television news in the 2000s, as the history of Aaj Tak shows.

6. The criminal process lags far behind

Parliament took 11 days to expel the 2005 MPs; the court took almost 12 years to order their trial. In the Moitra case the expulsion took 54 days, and the prosecution question is still unresolved three years later.

Chart comparing how long Parliament and the courts took to act in the 2005 cash-for-query case and the 2023 Mahua Moitra case
Parliament acted within weeks in both cases; the criminal process has taken years. Chart by AiTimeline.

The Law Behind the Cases: Privileges, the Lokpal and the Corruption Act

Three pieces of law decide what Parliament and the courts can do with an MP accused of selling questions.

Explainer

Parliamentary privileges

Article 105 of the Constitution gives MPs freedom of speech in Parliament and immunity for what they say or how they vote there. Article 105(3) says the other powers and privileges of each House are those it had when the Constitution began, a model borrowed from the British House of Commons, until Parliament defines them by law, which it has never done.

In 2007 the Supreme Court held that this includes the power to expel a member. In 2024 it held that privilege does not protect a member who takes a bribe.

Explainer

The Lokpal

The anti-corruption ombudsman created by the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013, after the 2011 anti-corruption movement. It can inquire into complaints against public servants, including MPs, and refer them to the CBI.

Under Section 20 the Lokpal also decides whether to sanction prosecution after an investigation. How that sanction must be given is exactly what the Supreme Court is now examining in the Moitra case.

Explainer

The Prevention of Corruption Act

The Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 makes it an offence for a public servant to accept an undue advantage. In 1998 the Supreme Court held that MPs are public servants under the Act.

The 2005 MPs were charged under this Act, together with criminal conspiracy, and the CBI registered its 2024 FIR against Moitra under it too.

The 2005 and 2023 Cash-for-Query Cases: What Is the Difference?

Often discussed together, the two cases involved different allegations, evidence and procedures.

Issue2005 Operation Duryodhana2023 Mahua Moitra case
Who11 MPs from four partiesOne MP, Mahua Moitra (Trinamool Congress)
TriggerTelevision sting, broadcast 12 December 2005Complaint by MP Nishikant Dubey and advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai; Hiranandani affidavit
AllegationCash accepted on camera for tabling questionsGifts and benefits for questions; sharing the parliamentary login
Accused’s responseSeveral said the footage was doctored or they were entrappedAdmitted sharing login; denied taking cash
Parliamentary inquirySpecial Lok Sabha committee (Bansal); Rajya Sabha Ethics CommitteeLok Sabha Ethics Committee (Sonkar)
Time to expulsion11 days54 days from Dubey’s letter
Parliamentary outcome11 MPs expelled on 23 December 2005Moitra expelled on 8 December 2023; re-elected June 2024
Supreme Court questionCan a House expel a member? Yes (Raja Ram Pal, 2007)Expulsion petition pending; separate Lokpal sanction appeal pending
Criminal processPolice chargesheet; charges ordered against 11 ex-MPs in 2017; no verdict reportedLokpal reference, CBI FIR 2024; sanction set aside 2025; Supreme Court appeal pending
Legal status todayParliamentary findings are not a convictionNo chargesheet filed; no court has ruled on the allegations

Both cases began with an outside actor, journalists in 2005 and a fellow MP’s complaint in 2023, and both ended in expulsion within weeks. The difference lies in the evidence: in 2005 cash was filmed changing hands, while in 2023 the case rested on an affidavit and on Moitra’s own admission about her login. The Moitra case also unfolded in a political setting shaped by her questions about the Adani Group, a subject that drew national attention after the Hindenburg report of January 2023.

Common mix-ups

Six things often told wrongly about the cash-for-query cases

  • “Parliament expelled the MPs on 24 December 2005.” Both Houses voted on 23 December 2005. The Lok Sabha expelled 10 members and the Rajya Sabha one, the same evening.
  • “The 19 December sting involved one Rajya Sabha MP.” Operation Chakravyuh, on Star News, named seven MPs, five from the Lok Sabha and two from the Rajya Sabha, over MPLADS commissions. Chhatarpal Singh Lodha was a Duryodhana case, not a Chakravyuh one.
  • “The 2005 MPs were convicted.” No. They were expelled by Parliament; a court ordered in 2017 that they stand trial. We found no reported verdict.
  • “Moitra was charged in 2023.” The CBI registered an FIR in March 2024. No chargesheet has been filed: the Lokpal’s sanction was set aside in December 2025, and that ruling is under appeal.
  • “The Supreme Court ruled against Moitra in 2026.” It issued notice and an interim stay on 13 March 2026. It has not decided the allegations.
  • “Expelled MPs cannot stand again.” Expulsion is not disqualification. Moitra was re-elected in June 2024.

Explore More Timelines

People Also Ask

Who exposed the cash-for-query scandal?
Cobrapost journalists Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj carried out the sting, called Operation Duryodhana, and Aaj Tak broadcast it on 12 December 2005.
Is cash for query a crime in India?
Yes. Taking money to ask a question is a bribe under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Since the Sita Soren judgment of March 2024, an MP cannot claim parliamentary privilege as a defence to such a charge.
Can an expelled MP contest elections again?
Yes. Expulsion ends membership of the current House but is not a legal disqualification. Mahua Moitra was expelled in December 2023 and re-elected in June 2024.
Has anyone been convicted in the 2005 cash-for-query case?
We found no reported verdict. A Delhi special court ordered charges against 11 former MPs in August 2017, which began their trial; that order was not a conviction.
What is the difference between the Ethics Committee and the Privileges Committee?
The Privileges Committee examines breaches of the House’s privileges. The Ethics Committee, set up in the Lok Sabha in 2000, examines complaints about members’ unethical conduct. Moitra’s case went to the Ethics Committee; in 2005 the Lok Sabha formed a special committee.

Cash-for-Query Scandal: Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cash-for-query scandal in India?
The term mainly refers to the 2005 Operation Duryodhana sting, which allegedly showed 11 MPs accepting money in exchange for raising questions in Parliament. It is also used for the separate 2023 allegations against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra.
What was Operation Duryodhana?
An undercover investigation by Cobrapost journalists Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj, who posed as a fictitious lobby group and offered MPs money to table questions. Aaj Tak broadcast the footage on 12 December 2005.
How many MPs were expelled in the 2005 cash-for-query scandal?
Eleven: 10 from the Lok Sabha and one, Chhatarpal Singh Lodha, from the Rajya Sabha. Both Houses expelled them on 23 December 2005.
Which political parties were involved?
Six of the 11 MPs belonged to the BJP, three to the BSP, one to the RJD and one to the Congress.
How much money did the MPs take?
The amounts were small. Figures widely reported from the footage range from Rs 15,000 to Rs 1.1 lakh per MP, about Rs 5 lakh in all.
Who chaired the 2005 inquiry committee?
Congress MP Pawan Kumar Bansal chaired the five-member Lok Sabha committee set up by Speaker Somnath Chatterjee on 12 December 2005. It reported on 22 December. The Rajya Sabha case went to its Ethics Committee, chaired by Karan Singh.
Who moved the motion to expel the MPs?
Pranab Mukherjee, then Defence Minister and Leader of the Lok Sabha, moved the motion on 23 December 2005. It was adopted by voice vote while the BJP walked out.
When did the Supreme Court uphold the expulsions?
On 10 January 2007, in Raja Ram Pal v. Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha. A five-judge bench ruled 4-1 that the Houses could expel members; Justice R.V. Raveendran dissented.
Does the 2007 judgment mean Parliament can expel any MP without review?
No. The court held that privilege decisions can be reviewed for gross illegality, irrationality, unconstitutionality or violation of fundamental rights, while respecting Parliament’s own domain.
What happened to the journalists who did the sting?
Delhi Police charged them with abetting bribery, and a trial court summoned them in July 2009. On 24 September 2010 the Delhi High Court quashed the case against them, holding that they had no criminal intent.
Were the 2005 MPs convicted?
No conviction has been reported. A Delhi special court ordered on 10 August 2017 that corruption and conspiracy charges be framed against the 11 former MPs, which meant they would stand trial. We found no reported verdict as of October 2026.
What was Operation Chakravyuh?
A separate Star News sting broadcast on 19 December 2005, a week after Operation Duryodhana. It showed seven MPs allegedly agreeing to take commission on work under the MP Local Area Development Scheme. It was not part of the 11 expulsions.
Was Mahua Moitra involved in the 2005 scandal?
No. Her case arose in October 2023 and concerned different allegations: that she shared her parliamentary login with a businessman and accepted gifts and benefits in exchange for questions.
What was Mahua Moitra accused of?
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey alleged that she took cash and gifts from businessman Darshan Hiranandani to ask questions, many about the Adani Group, and that she let Hiranandani use her parliamentary login. She denied taking cash.
Did Mahua Moitra admit sharing her login?
Yes. She said she shared her login with Hiranandani so his office could type in her questions, that the questions were her own and that no rule then prohibited it. She denied any payment.
Why was Mahua Moitra expelled from Parliament?
The Lok Sabha adopted the Ethics Committee’s report on 8 December 2023, which found her guilty of unethical conduct for sharing her login and accepting gifts. She disputed the findings and challenged the expulsion in the Supreme Court.
Who chaired the Ethics Committee in the Moitra case?
BJP MP Vinod Kumar Sonkar. The committee adopted its report on 9 November 2023, with opposition members filing dissent notes.
Was Moitra re-elected after her expulsion?
Yes. She won Krishnanagar in West Bengal again in the June 2024 general election and returned to the Lok Sabha.
What role does the Lokpal play in the Moitra case?
The Lokpal referred the complaint to the CBI, ordered a full investigation on 19 March 2024 and, on 12 November 2025, gave the CBI sanction to file a chargesheet. That sanction is now the subject of litigation.
What did the Delhi High Court decide in December 2025?
On 19 December 2025 it set aside the Lokpal’s sanction, holding that the Lokpal Act does not provide for a separate sanction for filing a chargesheet, and asked the Lokpal to decide afresh within one month.
What happened in the Mahua Moitra case in 2026?
On 13 March 2026 the Supreme Court issued notice on the Lokpal’s appeal and stayed the High Court’s direction to reconsider sanction within a month. It added the Home Ministry as a party in July and adjourned the case on 1 September 2026. It has not decided the allegations.
What is the Sita Soren judgment?
A March 2024 ruling by a seven-judge Supreme Court bench that legislators have no immunity from prosecution for taking bribes to vote or speak in the House. It overruled the 1998 P.V. Narasimha Rao judgment.
What law applies to MPs who take bribes?
The Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, which covers MPs as public servants, along with criminal conspiracy provisions. Separately, each House can punish a member through its own privilege and ethics procedures.
Is expulsion the same as disqualification?
No. Disqualification is a legal bar under the Constitution or the Representation of the People Act, for example after certain convictions. Expulsion is a punishment by the House that ends current membership but does not stop the person from being elected again.

Conclusion: A Scandal That Changed the Debate on Parliamentary Accountability

The 2005 cash-for-query scandal showed that a basic tool of parliamentary accountability could be bought cheaply. Parliament responded with the largest expulsion in its history, and the Supreme Court confirmed that it had the power to do so, while keeping a door open for judicial review. The criminal case moved far more slowly, and the journalists who exposed the MPs had to fight their own prosecution first.

Nearly two decades later, the Mahua Moitra case raised a new version of the question: who controls access to an MP’s questions in the age of online portals? It has run through the Ethics Committee, an election, the CBI and the Lokpal, and is now before the Supreme Court. The two cases followed different routes, but both ask how Parliament can protect the independence and credibility of the questions it puts to the government. For other cases where power and accountability collided, see the Radia tapes controversy, the AgustaWestland case and our tracker of India’s major political and court cases.

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⚠️ Editorial Note

Last updated 31 October 2026. Allegations are described as allegations. A parliamentary expulsion is a disciplinary decision of the House, not a criminal conviction; the 2005 accused have been ordered to stand trial but we found no reported verdict, and no court has ruled on the allegations against Mahua Moitra, who denies taking money. Dates follow court orders and contemporaneous reporting (The Tribune, PTI, The Indian Express, Deccan Herald, Scroll). Amounts paid in 2005 are as reported from the footage. Where our brief or popular accounts differed from the record, we followed the record; see “Common mix-ups”.

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