LS approves salary hike of MPs

New Delhi: Amid opposition from the Left parties, the Lok Sabha on Wednesday passed a Bill hiking salary and allowances of MPs as the Government announced it will bring in a fresh Bill in the next session to set up a permanent mechanism for such revisions.

The Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament (Amendment) Bill, 2006, was passed by a voice vote with Left parties opposing its passage, demanding formation of an independent committee to decide on the matter instead of it being done by the members themselves.

"We are lawmakers and should not make laws that give us additional financial benefit, especially because there is serious economic distress and large employment," CPI's Gurudas Dasgupta said, adding that "MPs should not take up the responsibility of increasing their own salaries."

This was supported by CPM's Basudeb Acharya who termed the Bill and its timing as an "embarrassment" and also demanded that MPs should not have any say in fixing their own salaries.

However, support for the Bill flowed in from all other parties, including from Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Trinamool Congress, Bahujan Samaj Party, JD (U) and Shiromani Akali Dal.

Among other benefits, the Bill - prepared after taking into account the recommendations of the Joint Committee on Salaries and Allowances - proposes to hike the salary of MPs to Rs 16,000 from Rs 12,000, daily allowance to Rs 1,000 from Rs 500, air travel passes to 34 from 32 in a year, apart from increasing the pension to Rs 8,000 from the present Rs 3,000.

Dasmunsi said the Bill also sought to increase the family pension payable to the spouse or dependent of an MP dying during his term in office to half of existing pension and valid for life as against the earlier arrangement of two years.

Also, the Bill paves the way for increasing the Constitution Allowance to Rs 20,000 from the present Rs 10,000 and also provides for an additional mobile phone apart from the three landline and one mobile phone entitled presently.

Dasmunsi denied charges that the Government was hurrying with the introduction of the Bill and said it was necessitated as the term of the earlier bill of salary revision was ending on September 14, 2006.

"As the house would not have been in session in September, we had to bring the new amendment Bill now," he said.

Dasmunsi shot down allegations that MPs in India would be highly paid following these revisions. "We are seving the people with minimum Government support and it is not luxurious at all," he said, adding that MPs in India were among the lowest-paid lawmakers in the world.

On protests of the Left parties that MPs should not be given the charge of fixing their own salaries, he said the Government will bring a new Bill in the next session that would pave the way for fixing a permanent mechanism for salary revision.

"This mechanism would be effective from the 15th Session," he added.

Earlier, participating in the discussion on the Bill, Samajwadi Party's Mohan Singh termed opposition to ts passage as "hypocricy" and said the Constitution had provided for such an arrangement.

"It is hypocricy that we support the increase in salary in the committee and oppose it in house just to be in news," he said.

Even as she supported formation of a separate committee to fix the salaries and allowances of MPs, Trinamool Congress' Mamta Banerjee took a swipe at the Left parties for their opposition to the Bill.

"The Left parties protest whenever there is salary increase, though they are the first ones to take that," she said, amid protests from the Left MPs.

Also, she said those enjoying separate office-of-profit should be entitled to benefits from only one position. "They should be entitled to only one salary, allowances and pension," she said.

RJD's Ram Kripal Yadav also supported the Bill and said the financial condition of a majority of MPs was very poor. In fact, he said the Government should effect a hike more than that proposed in the Bill.

BSP's Brajesh Pathak also supported this and said that apart from their family, MPs also require money to take care of some of the needs of people from their own constituency.