NDA allies question BJP on foregoing MPs’ salary

The NDA allies are not “on the same page” with the BJP on foregoing their salary for 23 days because of the disruptions in both the Houses of Parliament during the second half of the Budget session.

The allies, especially Shiv Sena, also blamed the government for the washout of the Parliament session.

In fact, the Sena and the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) have labelled as “unilateral” the decision announced by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar late on Thursday in which it was underlined that 400 MPs of the ruling NDA would forego ₹3.66 cr as salary.

The NDA allies countered the Minister’s claim that the Congress was to be blamed for the near washout of the second half of the Budget session. The Shiv Sena said it is the duty of the government to ensure that the Parliament functions.

Simultaneously, Upendra Kushwaha, leader of the Rashtriya Lok Samata Party (RLSP) and Minister of State for Human Resource Development, also said he was “not informed” about the decision.

Idle Parliament

Parliament has not carried out any substantial work over the past 22 days. The second part of the session, which began on March 5, is scheduled to end on Friday. The crucial Finance Bill was cleared in the Lok Sabha without any discussion.

Also, a no-confidence motion against the government, moved in the Lok Sabha by various Opposition parties, could not be taken up.

Arvind Sawant, a Shiv Sena MP from South-West Mumbai, said his party was not consulted before the decision to forego salary and allowances was taken. “They did not consult us before taking the decision. They only remember the NDA when there are Presidential and Vice-Presidential polls,” Sawant said.

Sena leader in Rajya Sabha, Sanjay Raut, questioned the BJP on taking decisions on the allies’ behalf. “We will take our decisions on our own,” he said.

With its 18 MPs, the Shiv Sena is the second-largest constituent of the NDA. “This is not the question of salary. We, as MPs, have been dong our work. Even if Parliament was not functioning, we have held meetings with Ministries to address the problems faced by our people,” Raut said.

Referring to the protests by the AIADMK over the constitution of the Cauvery River Water Management Board in the Lok Sabha, Sawant said Speaker Sumitra Mahajan did not use strong words or rebuke the protesting MPs from Tamil Nadu.

Karnataka poll

“We feel the government did not want the House to function, and (the upcoming) Karnataka polls was the reason behind it,” the Shiv Sena MP said.

He alleged the Centre did not form the Cauvery River Water Management Board despite the Supreme Court’s order because that would have hit the BJP’s prospects in the Karnataka Assembly elections.

The Shiv Sena and the BJP have been in an uneasy relationship despite being in alliance at the Centre as well as in Maharashtra. It has been highly critical of the policies of the Centre as well as the State.

SAD Chief Whip Prem Singh Chandumajra said: “The NDA allies were not taken into confidence. We do not know when the decision was taken. Why should the guilty be equated with those not responsible for disruptions in the House.”

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