Jaitley says the law will also provide for automatic revision of emoluments every five years indexed to inflation
After an 11-year gap, the salaries and perks of the President, the Vice President and Governors now stand revised, rectifying the anomaly as they were being paid less than top bureaucrats and service chiefs.
After Finance Minister Arun Jaitley's announcement in his Budget speech, the revised monthly emoluments for the President will be Rs 5 lakh, a three-fold hike from the earlier pay packet of Rs 1.5 lakh. The Vice President will now get Rs 4 lakh per month in place of the earlier Rs 1.25 lakh and Governors Rs 3.5 lakh against Rs 1.1 lakh.
However, the government, conscious of the sensitivities attached, chose not to straightaway announce any revision in the salary of MPs despite recommendation of a Parliamentary Committee and a Cabinet note put up before it. It rather announced changing laws to refix the salary, constituency allowance, office expenses and meeting allowance payable to Members of Parliament with effect from April 1, 2018.
Noting that there has been a public debate with regard to the emoluments paid to the Members of Parliament, Jaitley noted that the present practice allows the recipients to fix their own emoluments which invite criticism.
"I am, therefore, proposing necessary changes to refix the salary, constituency allowance, office expenses and meeting allowance payable to Members of Parliament with effect from April 1, 2018," the Finance Minister said.
Jaitley said the law will also provide for automatic revision of emoluments every five years indexed to inflation. I am sure Hon'ble Members will welcome this initiative and will not suffer such criticism in future.
Parliament's Joint Committee on Salaries and Allowances of MPs has been debating the issue of a rise in salary hike of members and former members of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha for last three years.
In August last year, the Panel was told by Parliamentary Affairs Ministry that the government has readied the final draft on this following inter-ministerial consultations. However, it did not fructify.
Earlier in September 2015, the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs had proposed a 3-member independent Emoluments Commission to recommend salaries and other allowances for MPs.
The anomaly regarding the salary of the President, the Vice President and Governors had cropped up as they were getting less salary as compared to top bureaucrats and service chiefs after the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission's recommendations two years ago.
This was because the laws were not amended to rectify an anomaly.
After the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission's awards on January 1, 2016, the Cabinet Secretary, who is the top-most bureaucrat in the country, has been getting Rs 2.5 lakh per month and a secretary in the Union government draws Rs 2.25 lakh per month.
The salary of the President, who is also the supreme commander of the Army, Air Force, and Navy, was, however, less than the chiefs of the three armed forces, who were drawing a salary equivalent to the cabinet secretary.
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