After allegations of sexual misconduct, Senator David Van was expelled from the major opposition party in Australia.
During a discussion in parliament on Wednesday, independent senator Lidia Thorpe accused Mr. Van of harassment and sexual assault.
Following "further allegations," Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton on Thursday expelled Mr. Van from the parliamentary group.
Mr. Van describes Ms. Thorpe's accusations as "completely untrue" and "unfounded.".
Later on Thursday, former liberal senator Amanda Stoker accused Mr. Van of touching her inappropriately three years ago while they were coworkers. .
He achieved this by twice pinching my bum. It was not accidental due to its nature and repetition. That course of action was inappropriate, according to Ms. Stoker's statement.
When she confronted him the following day, she continued, he had apologized and vowed "he would never do it again.".
Mr. Van replied, "I have no recollection of the incident," and added, "I would never do something like that.".
He claimed to have had a "very friendly" conversation with Ms. Stoker when she complained to news . com . au.
The Australian news website also claimed that he had admitted to colleagues that the room was crowded and that he might have unintentionally touched Ms Stoker.
Before Ms. Stoker made her accusations public, Mr. Dutton decided to fire Mr. Van.
At a press conference in Canberra, the opposition leader said, "I informed Senator Van of my decision that he should no longer sit in the Liberal party room.
"I'm not passing any judgments regarding the truth of any claims or the guilt or innocence of any specific people. ".
The allegations come amid a political uproar over how a different case involving the alleged rape of a former parliamentary staffer, Brittany Higgins, was handled.
In a remarkable exchange on Wednesday in parliament, Ms. Thorpe called attention to the senator's improper behavior by interrupting Mr. Van as he was discussing the Higgins case.
"I just want to express how uncomfortable it makes me feel when a perpetrator discusses violence. "This person harassed me and assaulted me sexually," claimed Ms. Thorpe.
Mr. Van denied the accusations right away. He assured the audience, "It is just not true.".
Ms. Thorpe later withdrew the allegations in order to adhere to parliamentary standing orders, a set of guidelines that regulate behavior in the Senate, before declaring she would address the matter further.
To comply with Senate rules, Ms. Thorpe said she wouldn't name her attacker on Thursday. Later, she claimed a male colleague "cornered" her in a stairwell.
It is not a safe place, as all women who have walked through these building's hallways are aware, she said.
When she first became a senator, Ms. Thorpe claimed she had "experienced sexual comments and was inappropriately approached by powerful men.".
"Let me state this clearly: Senator Thorpe's accusations are fabrications from beginning to end. On the Senate floor, Mr. Van retorted, "Nothing she has said about me is true.
Ms. Higgins' claim that she was sexually assaulted in Parliament House in 2019 set off a flurry of extensive allegations in Canberra in 2021.
It sparked a historic investigation that revealed sexual harassment had occurred among one-third of federal parliament employees in Australia.
Bruce Lehrmann, one of her former coworkers, was tried for allegedly raping Ms. Higgins, but the trial was dismissed last year due to improper behavior on the part of the jury. Her sexual assault by Mr. Lehrmann has been denied.