30% pay cut for MPs: What is the current salary of Members of Parliament?

The Centre spent Rs 2.7 lakh on an MP per month. The Parliament has a total of 795 members – 545 in the Lok Sabha and 250 in the Rajya Sabha

MONEYCONTROL NEWS
APRIL 06, 2020 / 07:55 PM IST 

The Union Cabinet on April 6 approved an ordinance amending the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954, to reduce the allowances and pension of MPs by 30 percent, starting April 1, 2020, for a year.

This was done for managing the “health and the adverse impact of the COVID-19 outbreak in India,” Union Minister Prakash Javadekar told media persons during a press conference.

The Cabinet also temporarily suspended MPLADS Fund for two years – 2020-21 and 2021-22 – saying the money saved (~Rs 7,900 crore) will go the Consolidated Fund of India.

"The President, Vice President, and Governors of States have voluntarily decided to take a pay cut as a social responsibility,” Javadekar said.

But, what is the salary of a Member of Parliament (MP), let’s find out:

According to the latest revision to the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954, which was done in 2018, an MP is entitled to receive a salary of Rs 1 lakh per month during the whole term of his/her office – five years for a Lok Sabha MP, and six years for a Rajya Sabha member.

In addition, the MP will get an allowance of Rs 2,000 per day.

In 2018, the then finance minister late Arun Jaitley had announced a hike in the salaries of the President, Vice President and Governors of states for the first time in 12 years. He had also announced that the salary and daily allowance of members shall be increased after every five years, staring April 1, 2023 on the basis of Cost Inflation Index provided under the IT Act.

Before this revision, the remuneration of an MP included a basic salary of Rs 50,000 per month, and a constituency allowance of Rs 45,000, apart from other perks.

Similarly, the salaries of the President and the Vice President were increased from Rs 1.5 lakh and Rs 1.10 lakh per month to Rs 5 lakh and Rs 4 lakh per month respectively. The Governors’ salary was increased to Rs 3.5 lakh per month.

According to a report, the Centre spent Rs 2.7 lakh on an MP per month. The Parliament has a total of 795 members – 545 in the Lok Sabha and 250 in the Rajya Sabha.