Pay hike in TN gives MPs a push

As MLAs in Tamil Nadu got a raise of Rs. 50,000 in their salary members of parliament also raised the demand of a pay hike on Wednesday on a day when the house also discussed farmer distress later. The demand was first raised by Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Agarwal who said secretaries in government and MLAs had better salaries than MPs and proposed that MPs be included in the seventh pay commission to raise the salaries of
parliamentarians.

Agarwal got support from others like senior Congress leader Anand Sharma who said MPs in India are worst paid.

While Agarwal said MPs don't want to feel like beggars asking for more salary Sharma put forward the argument stating that MPs have to run their homes in Delhi and also in their constituencies.

The demand for a salary hike ironically came on a day when the opposition in Rajya Sabha strongly raised the issue of agrarian crisis in the country, saying farmers were being forced to do distress sale of crops in the face of cheaper zero-duty imports.

Janta Sharad Yadav (JD-U) claimed that 15-20 farmers were committing suicide every day. Senior Congress leadrr Digvijaya Singh said the farmers were getting "bullets instead of price".

Deputy Chairman P J Kurien said a discussion on the matter has been accepted and the members can raise their points during the debate.