Move to scrap MPLAD scheme

Seven parliamentarians in the dock in cash-for-development scam, barred from Parliament

A day after a private television channel showed seven MPs accepting commission for sanctioning works under the MP Local Area Development (MPLAD) scheme, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee has called a dinner meeting on Wednesday with top leaders in Parliament, including Rajya Sabha Chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, to discuss the scheme and possibly a proposal to scrap it.

Chatterjee had earlier in the day asked the five Lok Sabha members shown in the footage not to attend the House until the matter had been investigated.

The BJP suspended its MP and former Union minister Faggan Singh Kulaste but deferred any action against Koli whose involvement was not clear in the video footage. The third BJP MP, Chandra Pratap Singh, had already been suspended for his alleged involvement in last week's cash-for-question scam.

Churchill Alemao from the Congress and Paras Nath Yadav from the Samajwadi Party are also seen on the footage. Yadav has been suspended from the Samajwadi Party.

The Speaker said he would discuss the matter further with leaders of political parties to decide the form of inquiry.

The alleged involvement of two Rajya Sabha members"" Isham Singh of the Bahujan Samaj Party and Sakshi Maharaj of the SP"" will be looked into by the Ethics Committee.

In a sting operation, codenamed Operation Chakravyuha, a private television channel had yesterday showed them demanding cuts for sanctioning work under the MPLAD scheme. Each MP gets Rs 2 crore every year for development work in his constituency, or in his state in case of a Rajya Sabha member.

The BJP has referred the latest revelations to the Bal Apte Committee that the party had constituted to look into the allegations made in Operation Duryodhan last week.

The Congress, which had suspended Gwalior MP Ram Sevak Singh after the telecast of cash-for-question scam (Operation Duryodhan), took a different view on the involvement of former Goa chief minister Alemao. Party spokesperson Anand Sharma said Alemao would not be suspended because there were different versions of the event. The MP, he said, had written to the Speaker, the prime minister and the Congress president, claiming that he did not have a single meeting with any reporters and what had been shown was completely wrong. Alemao had even lodged an FIR for "inducement" (by reporters), said Sharma.

"We will support Alemao's right to reply. I can name many people who have approached me for favours over the years, including journalists. Shall I do a sting operation on them?" Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunshi said.

In the wake of the latest scandal, several MPs from different parties demanded in both Houses of Parliament that the MPLAD scheme should be scrapped altogether. The Congress party, however, distanced itself from this demand.

"For the alleged impropriety of a handful, you cannot make a sweeping statement and deprive an overwhelming majority of good work. By that logic, Question Hour should also be abolished," Sharma told reporters.

The latest sting operation comes a week after another private TV channel had shown 11 MPs accepting cash for asking questions in Parliament.

The Lok Sabha had instituted an inquiry committee to look into the allegations and the committee is scheduled to submit its report on Wednesday.