In this country MP are the only lot who can hike their salary themselves. In June, a parliamentary panel recommended doubling the salary of members of parliament and also a hike in the pension of former MPs by almost 75%. It attracted severest criticism in the backdrop current economic crisis. It may be recalled that RBI governor Raghuram Rajan warned a repeat of 1930 crisis while NDA government slashed welfare funding in an unprecedented way. In this backdrop to avoid criticism, the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs has proposed a 3-member independent Emoluments Commission to recommend salaries and other allowances for the Members of Parliament. This makes the important issue in the Agenda for the two day All India Whips’ Conference to be held at Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh during September 29-30, 2015. The Conference will be chaired by the Minister of Parliamentary Affairs M Venkaiah Naidu.
The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs, which prepares the Agenda Notes for the Whips Conference, stated that “The setting up of an independent Emoluments Commission for recommending the salaries and allowances of the Members of Parliament will not only put to rest the public outcry and media criticism over MPs themselves deciding their salaries, it will also provide an appropriate opportunity to take into consideration the huge responsibilities and the important role they play in our representative democracy. It would ensure that recommendations on Parliamentary salary are reached in a fair, transparent and equitable way. Once there is consensus on setting up of the Commission, the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act,1954 will suitably amended”.
The general principles suggested by the Ministry for determination of salary should be:
i. Salary should not be so low as to defer suitable candidates or so high as to make pay the primary attraction for the job;
ii. Salary should reflect level of responsibility; and
iii. Those with outside interests should not be deterred from entering Parliament, those who chose to make Parliament a full-time career should be adequately rewarded to reflect their responsibilities.
Presently, as per Article 106 of the Constitution of India, salaries of MPs are determined by the Act of 1954, amended from time to time. The last revision in salary of MPs was made in 2010 and MPs presently get a basic salary of Rs.50,000 per month. Salaries of Members of State Legislatures are decided as per Article 195 of the Constitution.
As per a comparative analysis of Members of Parliament in 37 developing and developed countries, basic salary of MPs is in the range of Rs.7,952 in Tunisia to a high of Rs.6,16,675 per month in Israel. MPs of only in six countries i.e Tunisia, Venezuela , Sri Lanka, Nepal, Haiti and Panama are drawing salary less than that of Indian MPs.
