Letters: The trouble with NAC

Apropos the news report "Aruna Roy ends NAC tenure, to work 'from outside'" (May 30), activist Aruna Roy has rightly decided to quit the National Advisory Council (NAC), which is chaired by Congress president and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. The reason cited by Roy is that the prime minister rejected the NAC recommendations on payment of minimum wages to workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

The NAC, an extra-constitutional organisation created by the government in June 2004, was said to be an advisory body set up to monitor the implementation of the United Progressive Alliance government's common minimum programme. However, it acts as a super Cabinet and formulates populist policy and programmes. Not only has this weakened the constitutional office of the prime minister but it is also an encroachment on Parliament's powers. The MGNREGA and the food security Bill are the brainchild of the NAC, imposed upon the elected government. The MGNREGA has used massive public funds and is ridden with corruption. The food security law would be another huge burden on public funds.

The NAC recently went a step further by advocating a formalised pre-legislative process before a proposed piece of legislation is introduced in Parliament, drafting of rules to give shape to laws, and amendments to existing rules. It wants consultations to be held before any Bill is introduced in Parliament. This goes against the spirit of parliamentary democracy. Therefore, the prime minister has rightly rejected the NAC recommendations on payment of minimum wages to MGNREGA workers.

M C Joshi, Lucknow

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