The Assembly on Tuesday unanimously expressed anguish over the portrayal of lawmakers as self-seekers who conveniently sink political differences to give bipartisan approval to proposals to increase their salaries and allowances.
Minister for Parliamentary Affairs A.K. Balan set the tone for debate on the Payment of Salaries and Allowances (Amendment) Bill, 2018, by stating that individual sections of the media had reported that the ruling front and the Opposition members had apportioned the scarce resources of the State between themselves by coming together for an across-the-board increase in remuneration.
The unfair criticism had resonated across the social media, casting MLAs in a poor light. Mr. Balan said the Constitution guaranteed reasonable salary and allowances to lawmakers. It had also mandated that the honorarium was revised periodically and the “wages determined by the passage of the law and not through executive order”.
The government had appointed a judicial commission headed by a retired High Court judge, J.M. James, to review and revise the wages and allowances of legislators.
It consulted the Opposition, and both reached a consensus to agree to a wage structure much lower than that proposed by the James commission. They also decided not to implement it with retrospective effect, including the revised pension for former legislators and Ministers.
Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala said the fault-finders appeared to reflect the apolitical view that democracy was for the dregs of society, and lawmakers their agents.
Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan said periodical reappraisal of remuneration was essential to insulate lawmakers from the influence of moneyed interests. The Assembly sent the Bill to the subject committee.
