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| Edited By: |Source: DNA |Updated: Dec 25, 2015, 07:45 AM IST
The washout of another session of Parliament, primarily due to the disruptive tactics of Congress in the Rajya Sabha, has implications far more dangerous than the actual issues which prompted the partisan divide.
Parliament was not conceived as a forum to check executive power through agitational methods, but to enable and regulate governance through dialogue, argument, consensus and legislation. In its last years, the UPA government faced many a stumbling block and were quick to blame the judiciary, Comptroller and Auditor General, Parliament and civil society actors for the “policy paralysis” that had set in. But in the present dispensation, the blame has landed squarely on the Rajya Sabha, for the sizeable strength that the Congress continues to enjoy in that house. Matters have escalated to the extent that a leader of the stature of Arun Jaitley has questioned the need for the Upper House. This is despite the Constitution envisaging a bicameral legislature and the Rajya Sabha, which never dissolves, as another check against executive overreach.
The winter session began on a high note with discussions on BR Ambedkar’s contributions and the climate of intolerance in the country. But the controversies that spurred the Congress to stall Parliament were at best excuses to obstruct the government’s legislative agenda. Even the Congress appeared to realise that none of the issues — like the National Herald case, VK Singh’s careless remarks that upset Dalit sentiments, the DDCA scam probe, the Arunachal Pradesh government’s fate, the lawlessness in Punjab — were important by itself to warrant stalling off all 20 days of the session. So the country was witness to the unedifying sight of the Congress hopping from one issue to another and thwarting all attempts to pass important reform legislations like the GST Bill and the Bankruptcy Code. Rather than use Parliament to debate or call attention to these controversies, Congress MPs have imported agitational tactics to the legislature by rushing to the well of the house and sloganeering.
Predictably, the past few years of regular parliamentary disruption has led to closer analysis of Parliament’s productivity. The expenditure incurred in supporting Parliament and its members have also come under public scrutiny as a consequence of the diminishing credibility of the political class. What gets forgotten is that this is a fair cost to pay for the preservation of democracy and fundamental rights in the country. Nevertheless, politicians should not take for granted the public’s tolerance for political incompetence and apathy. A common refrain is that our parliamentarians are compensated handsomely despite many Indians living in poverty. However, this is an example of reductionist logic. MPs incur considerable expenses in performing their constituency and legislative duties. They require office spaces, secretarial staff, researchers and the assistance of political and social workers in the furtherance of their duties. It must be remembered that Lok Sabha MPs and MLAs are under far greater scrutiny, and are accountable to the public — at least every five years — compared to judges, bureaucrats, or even the media.
In this context, the Parliamentary Affairs ministry proposal to double the salary and allowances of MPs to a lumpsum of Rs 2.8 lakh per month must be welcomed. While this would appear an eye-popping amount, the figures fall into perspective when broken down. The monthly salary of an MP will go up from Rs 50,000 to Rs1 lakh, constituency allowance from Rs 45,000 to Rs 90,000, and secretarial assistance plus office allowance from Rs45,000 to Rs90,000. While there would be a considerable number of elected representatives who are incompetent for the job, those committed to public service must not be limited by financial constraints. If the state will not compensate them adequately, there is an army of contractors, middlemen and corporate companies seeking avenues to corrupt public servants.
