Parliament alone can decide on lawmakers' pension: FM Arun Jaitley

NEW DELHI: As members in Rajya Sabha expressed reservations over Supreme Court's reported remark about pension to former lawmakers, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley said on Thursday that Parliament alone has the authority to approve the way public money is to be spent and it alone can legislate on how much pension MPs can draw.

"It is an unquestionably clear constitutional position that public money can be spent only after authorization of Parliament. Therefore, only the Parliament can authorise how public money can be spent. No other institution can exercise that power," the finance minister said.

Jaitley's comments came after opposition MPs raised concern over SC's reported observation that 80% former lawmakers are 'crorepatis' (millionaires).


"It is the exclusive domain of Parliament to decide who is entitled to government pension and how much... This is the constitutional position “which all in stitution will have to eventually accept," Jaitley said.

Raising the issue, SP's Naresh Agarwal said the image of the MPs is being sullied as if they are appropriating huge public monies as salaries and pension without working. He said some former MPs are living “a pauper's life“, and cited the example of a former lawmaker whose children are currently working as labourers and artisan.

Congress member Jairam Ramesh said he was astonished to read in newspapers that an observation was made that 80% of the ex-MPs were millionaires. "When a Supreme Court judge says that 80% of ex-MPs are crorepatis, I think this is a very serious issue and with the greatest of respect, I have to say that this is an astonishing statement to come from the highest in the land, which is one of the pillars of democracy," Ramesh said.