Cong questions govt’s haste in passing office of profit bill

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Congress on Tuesday asked the Aam Aadmi Party government to clarify why it passed the amendment bill, which was withheld by President Pranab

NEW DELHI: The Delhi Congress on Tuesday asked the Aam Aadmi Party government to clarify why it passed the amendment bill, which was withheld by President Pranab Mukherjee, if the appointment of 21 legislators as parliamentary secretaries did not amount to holding an office of profit.

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“Chief minister Arvind Kejriwal is saying no MLA was withdrawing any emolument, hence they were not holding an office of profit. Even if we take the office of profit as defined by Supreme Court for granted and believe what Kejriwal is saying, then the government must explain why was it trying to amend the laws to protect its legislators?” Maken said.

He said the appointment of 21 parliamentary secretaries was not only against rules but unethical.

Quoting the decision of the Supreme Court in Jaya Bachhan vs Union Government case, Maken said the three-judge bench of the apex court had noted that “it is well settled that where the office carries with it certain emoluments or the order of appointment states what the person appointed is entitled to certain emoluments, then it will be an office of profit, even if the holder of the office chooses not to receive/draw such emoluments”.

Ma ken said that the set precedent is that only 10 percent of the total strength of the MLAs could be made as ministers, so as not to burden the exchequer.

“If that is the case, then how come 30 per cent of the MLAs could be appointed as parliamentary secretaries? The Kejriwal government flouted this precedent by appointing almost one third of the total strength of the house as parliamentary secretaries to ministers through the back door and passed a bill without following procedure in the Assembly to validate their appointment,” Maken said.