National Democratic Alliance member Shiv Sena and Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy on Friday said they would not forgo their salaries, a day after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar said all MPs would do so.
On Wednesday, Kumar had said that National Democratic Alliance MPs will give up their salary for the 23 days of the ongoing Budget Session, which has been unproductive. Parliament has failed to transact much business since the second half of the Budget Session started on March 5 because persistent protests by the Opposition have led to repeated adjournments.
Another BJP ally, Rashtriya Lok Samta Party, said that the ruling party had not informed them of this decision, PTI reported.
The Shiv Sena, which has been critical of its coalition ally, said that it was not “on the same page as the BJP” on the matter. With 18 MPs, the Shiv Sena has the second highest number of legislators in the ruling coalition after the BJP’s 275.
It accused the BJP of being responsible for the logjam in Parliament, and claimed that it was part of the party’s strategy to win the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections.
Shiv Sena MP Arvind Sawant said the BJP had not consulted them before taking the decision. “They only remember allies when there are presidential and vice presidential polls,” Sawant said. “Even if Parliament was not functioning, we have held meetings with ministries to address problems faced by our people.”
Swamy too said he would not forgo his salary as the logjam was not his fault.
When asked to respond to the developments, the parliamentary affairs minister repeated his announcement that all National Democratic Alliance MPs would forego their salaries, PTI reported.
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