Shimla, March 7
Underlining the need for greater transparency in public life, Congress general secretary Sukhwinder Singh today asserted that elected representatives should not only declare their assets but also make public their sources of income.
Sukhwinder, who represents the Naduan Assembly constituency, made a beginning in this regard by releasing to the media details of his assets and sources of income. He said he wanted the assets and sources of income of all members of the Vidhan Sabha, including ministers, be put on the website for the knowledge of public. In fact, he had taken the lead in this regard and submitted these details to the Vidhan Sabha Secretariat on October 2, 2009. However, he was informed by the secretary that there was no provision to put such information on the website.
He has now decided to go public in the hope that others would follow suit. He said he would, after consulting like-minded MLAs irrespective of party affiliations, bring a private member resolution calling for display of assets and sources of income of members on the website. It had become essential to credibility of public representatives in the present vitiated political environment where all sorts of charges were levelled against them. The MLAs and MPs, while filing nominations, only give details of assets and liabilities, not the sources of income.
The young MLAs’ forum, of which he was the founder member, had been broad-based and transformed into MLAs forum to include even ex-members of the House so that their problems could also be taken up effectively.
BJP MLA Suresh Bhardwaj has been made convenor of the forum. His assets, comprising a building at Knowlswood (Rs 70 lakh) and a flat at Strawberry Hill (Rs 15 lakh) in Shimla, housing board plot (Rs 20 lakh) at Baddi, ancestral and personal land (Rs 30 lakh) at Nadaun, Alto car and Scorpio (Rs 10 lakh), bank FDRs and shares (Rs 12 lakh) amount to Rs 1.57 crore.
Sources income include Rs 10,000 from LIC commission, Rs 4.80 lakh as salary from Vidhan Sabha and Rs 8 lakh as rent from property.
The liabilities consist of loans, Rs 19 lakh from the PNB, Rs 8 lakh from UCO bank, Rs 4 lakh from KCCB, Rs 2.20 lakh from the SBI and an unsecured loan of Rs 29 lakh from the elder brother who is a private contractor.
Source : Tribune News Service
