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A Democratic representative has demanded the former prince Andrew Mountbatten Windsor to testify before the US House of Representatives investigative panel that is carrying out an inquiry into the official handling of the Epstein case.

Cross-Party Pressure for Evidence

The statement from Congressman Khanna, a Democratic representative from California who serves on the investigative House oversight committee, comes after a British trade official, Chris Bryant, suggested that since Mountbatten Windsor has been stripped of his royal titles, he should answer demands for information about his dealings with Epstein, an alleged sex trafficker who died by suicide while in federal 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 expect any reasonable individual to comply with that request,” the minister said.

Khanna stated: “Andrew should be summoned to appear before the oversight committee. The people have a right to know who was exploiting women and minors with 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 case approved an inquiry by the oversight committee into how the government handled his prosecutions. Interest in the case flared in July, after the justice department announced that a widely speculated list of Epstein’s associates was non-existent, and it would share nothing further on the case.

The House investigation has thus far resulted in the release of thousands of documents – including an explicit sketch apparently made by Donald Trump for Epstein’s 50th birthday – as well as depositions from former top government officials.

Legislative Actions and Challenges

As a minority party member, the representative does not have the power to subpoena the former prince’s appearance. Spokespeople for the committee’s Republican chair, James Comer, did not respond to questions about whether he believes the ex-royal should be questioned.

Khanna and Thomas Massie have introduced a bill to mandate the disclosure of Epstein-related documents, but House Speaker 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 force a vote on the bill, if 218 members of the House sign it.

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

The petition has been endorsed by all 213 Democratic representatives, as well as four GOP members. The 218th signature is anticipated to come from Representative-elect Grijalva, who was elected in the state of Arizona last month, and awaits inauguration by the Speaker. However, the speaker has declined to act until the House reconvenes, and has stated he won’t instruct lawmakers to return to Washington until the Senate passes a measure to end the ongoing government shutdown.