Rs 1,997 crore spent on MPs’ salaries, perks in 4 years, reveals RTI query

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Indore: Rs 1,997 crore was spent towards salaries and perks of parliamentarians in the past four financial years, according to response to an RTI query. While Rs 71.29 lakh was spent on an average for a member of Lok Sabha, Rs 44.33 lakh was spent on a Rajya Sabha member, the Lok Sabha secretariat said in response to the RTI application, filed by activist Chandra Shekhar Gaud.

Lok Sabha has 545 members (543 elected and 2 Nominated from the Anglo-Indian Community by the President). Rajya Sabha has a strength of 245 members. The Lok Sabha MPs got more than Rs 1,554 crore as emoluments in the past four financial year commencing from 2014-15.

Each Lok Sabha member were paid average Rs 71,29,390 annually since fiscal 2014-15, it said. Similarly, the members of Rajya Sabha got more than Rs 443 crore as emoluments in past four fiscals, it said.

A breakup of the total amounts reveals that each Rajya Sabha MP received Rs 44,33,682 annually in the past four fiscals. Meanwhile, Jagdish Chhokar, founder member of the Association for Democratic Reform, an NGO, said the increasing burden on the government coffers in paying salaries and perks to MPs should be reviewed.

“There is no issue if the salary of MPs’ is hiked 10 times but they must not get reimbursements for transport, house, vehicle, food, medical, air travel, telephone and other things from the state exchequer,” he said.