AAP hikes salaries of govt counsels; BJP cries foul

The BJP has come down heavily on Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s government for increasing the salaries of government counsels by 440 per cent alleging that the proposal has been drafted in a “haphazard manner”.

Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, Vijender Gupta said that through this, the Kejriwal Government has put an additional burden of Rs. 7,000 crore on the Delhiites. According to the proposal which is at present with the finance department for its approval, the monthly retainership fees for standing counsel has been increased from Rs. 25,000 to Rs. 1,10,000. The amount given to her/his secretarial assistance has also been hiked from Rs. 10,000 to Rs. 30,000.

The monthly remuneration for Additional Counsel has been increased from Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 90,000, whereas, secretarial assistance increased from Rs. 5,000 to Rs. 30,000. The fees of Rs. 4500 per case have also been raised to Rs. 8000 per case per day. The BJP MLA further said, “This is a package by AAP to award its loyalists at the cost of the exchequer. Rahul Mehra who has been a hard core AAP loyalist will receive a package between Rs. 5-6 lakh per month for his services as a Standing Counsel both Civil and Criminal.” Meanwhile, the proposal will also have to get the final approval from the L-G. Under this, the fees of even Panel Advocates have been increased from Rs. 4500 per case to Rs. 2000 per case per day. The existing remuneration for Additional Public Prosecutor is Rs. 800 per case subject to maximum of Rs. 4,000. This has now been revised to Rs. 3000 per case per day subject to maximum of Rs. 9000 per day and maximum of Rs. 15,000 per case.

Vijender Gupta said this was a package by AAP to award its loyalists at the cost of the exchequer