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A Democratic congressman has demanded the former prince Andrew Windsor to appear before the House of Representatives investigative panel that is currently conducting an investigation into the government’s handling of the Epstein case.

Cross-Party Demands for Testimony

The declaration from Ro Khanna, a California Democratic representative who serves on the investigative House oversight committee, comes after a British trade official, Chris Bryant, indicated that since the former prince has been stripped of his royal titles, he should answer demands for information about his connections to Jeffrey Epstein, an accused sex trafficker who took his own life while in government custody six years ago.

“Just as with any ordinary member of the public, if there were formal requests from overseas of this kind, I would anticipate any decently minded person to comply with that request,” Bryant said.

The congressman stated: “Andrew should be called to testify before the oversight committee. The people have a right to know who was exploiting women and minors alongside Epstein.”

Political Environment and Probe Developments

Republicans hold the majority in the House of Representatives, but amid public outcry over Donald Trump’s handling of the Epstein matter approved an inquiry by the oversight committee into how the authorities managed his prosecutions. Interest in the case flared in July, after the justice department revealed that a widely speculated list of Epstein’s sex trafficking clients was non-existent, and it would share nothing further on the case.

The House investigation has so far led to the release of tens of thousands of pages – including a lewd drawing reportedly drawn by Trump for Epstein’s birthday – as well as sworn statements from former top government officials.

Legislative Actions and Obstacles

As a minority party member, Khanna does not have the power to subpoena Mountbatten Windsor’s testimony. Representatives for the committee’s Republican chair, James Comer, declined to comment about whether he thinks the ex-royal should be interviewed.

Khanna and Thomas Massie have proposed legislation to force the release of files related to Epstein, but Mike Johnson, a top ally of the president, has refused to bring it up for a vote. The two congressmen have distributed a petition that will require the bill be voted on, if a majority of representatives sign it.

“This is what my campaign with Representative Massie has been about: transparency and justice for the survivors who have been courageously speaking out,” Khanna said.

The appeal has been endorsed by all 213 Democratic representatives, as well as four GOP members. The final required signature is anticipated to come from Representative-elect Grijalva, who won a special election in Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by the Speaker. However, the House leader has refused to do so until the House reconvenes, and has stated he won’t instruct lawmakers to come back to the capital until the Senate passes a measure to end the ongoing government shutdown.