Cash-for-query: Lokpal gets more time to decide on sanction to file chargesheet against Mahua Moitra

Key Highlights

• The lawyers appearing for the Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said they were not opposing the Lokpal's request for extension of time by two months.
• "The period of disposal is extended by two months while observing that no further request for extension of time will be entertained," the Bench ordered.
• On December 19, 2025, the High Court set aside a November order of the Lokpal granting sanction to the CBI to file the chargesheet against Moitra and asked it to consider the issue of sanction under Section 20 of the Lokpal Act, strictly in accordance with provisions, within a period of one month.
• In the judgment, the court had said there was a "clear departure" from the procedure expressly mandated under the Lokpal and Lokayuktas Act, 2013, and the Lokpal had erred in its understanding and interpretation of the provisions of the Act.
• The cash-for-query scam pertains to the allegation that Moitra had asked questions in the Lok Sabha in exchange for cash and gifts from a businessman.