Funds to MPs: Wrong decision

Chief Minister Yediyurappa’s decision to accede to the demand of MPs from the state to release Rs 3 crore to each for developmental works in their constituencies is wrong. This is in direct conflict with the Centre’s decision to suspend the Member of Parliament Development Scheme (MPLADS) for two years, so that funds can be better deployed to combat Covid-19. Yediyurappa has said that this will be implemented only in the next budget, so we must hope that better sense will prevail by then. With 40 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members from the state, this special grant would entail an expenditure of Rs 120 crore at a time when the state is reeling under an acute financial crisis. The MPLADS is a politically and morally wrong scheme and it violates the best norms of governance, financial prudence and administration.

MPLADS was introduced in 1993 by the then Prime Minister P V Narasimha Rao as a State-sponsored reward for MPs to keep his minority government afloat. Even so, the original aim of the scheme was to enable MPs to create durable assets pertaining to drinking water, education, public health, sanitation and roads in their constituencies. Following a subsequent amendment, this year, all BJP MPs donated Rs 1 crore from MPLADS to the newly formed PM-Cares fund to deal with Covid-19, leading to criticism that the amount could have been better served had it been utilised to address the pandemic by creating related assets in each parliamentarian’s constituency. Nonetheless, MPLADS has been plagued by various controversies, including charges of corruption or misuse of funds arising from CAG audits. The National Commission to Review the Working of the Constitution and the Second Administrative Commission headed by Veerappa Moily had recommended its discontinuation.

The scheme violates the separation of powers between parliament and executive because MPs are not expected to be directly involved in public expenditure. They can prompt the government to undertake development work and even specific projects, but should not take money and implement them. Most MPs have failed in bringing much-needed projects to the state, including those related to Bengaluru that have been pending before the Centre for years. MPs should act as a link between the Centre and state to ensure overall development of the state. Both the Centre and the state should put an end to discretionary use of funds by elected representatives by scrapping both the MPLADs and the Member of the Legislative Assembly Development Scheme (MLALADS). The history of the scheme is one of arbitrary selection of projects, misspending, wastage, underutilisation and corruption. It is also not possible to make MPs accountable for the scheme. The proposal should be dropped altogether.