Office-of-profit: LS passes Bill by voice vote

New Delhi, May 16: The Lok Sabha today passed by a voice vote the Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Amendment Bill, which seeks to exempt 56 more offices with retrospective effect, including the National Advisory Council (NAC), following an assurance from Law Minister H R Bharadwaj that it was meant to protect MPs irrespective of their party affiliations.

While the Bill initially contained the names of 46 offices, 10 more were included through amendments today.

Replying to a debate on the Bill, Mr Bhardwaj rejected a suggestion for exempting all the MPs holding offices of profit but not drawing any remuneration or perks as this would require a Constitutional amendment.

The 56 new offices to be exempted from the purview of disqualification would have retrospective effect from April 4, 1959 when the Parliament (Prevention of Disqualification) Act, 1959 came into force.

This meant that the newly exempted offices would be deemed to have been exempted from the provisions of disqualification from the day these were created. For instance, the Chairperson of NAC was created through an official notification by the Cabinet Secretariat on May 31, 2004.

Once approved by the Rajya Sabha and assented to by the President and notified in the gazette, all the MPs of both Houses against whom disqualification petitions are pending with the Election Commission would be able to retain their membership and the respective offices of profit.

UNI

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