Another pay hike for MPs

Cabinet raises allowances by Rs 10,000

Now, the MPs will get Rs 50,000 as basic salary, Rs 45,000 as office expenses and Rs 45,000 as constituency allowance. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee moved the proposal for a hike in constituency and office allowances by Rs 5,000 each which was immediately approved by the Cabinet. These allowances are exempt from the government taxes.

The additional hike comes after Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad and Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav held the Lok Sabha to ransom after their parties raised a storm over the “inadequate” hike announced by the government on Friday.
Following Monday’s decision, the draft of bill to amend the Salaries and Allowances of Members of Parliament Act, 1954, cleared by the Cabinet on Friday, would be further amended to incorporate the latest change. The bill is expected to be introduced in Parliament on Wednesday and is almost likely to be passed unanimously.

The government bowed to the pressure tactics of the MPs after Congress chief troubleshooter Pranab Mukherjee discussed the matter with the angry MPs on Saturday.
While the two Yadav leaders are expected to make some noise in the House as they have been demanding that the MPs’ salary should be Rs 80,001, one rupee more than the salary of a secretary in the government, it is believed that Mukherjee took them into confidence regarding the additional hike.

The government, last week, had pegged the MPs’ salary at Rs 50,000 per month. Besides, it had hiked the office and constituency allowances from Rs 20,000 per month each to Rs 40,000 per month each. Now, the constituency and office allowance of the MPs would be Rs 45,000 each per month, government sources said.
DH News Service