MLAs should give up pension: Ex-MP

Tribune News Service

Dharamsala, March 14

Former MP Rajan Sushant has flayed Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur for not touching certain key issues being faced by people of state during his public rallies in Kangra district.

While talking to newsmen at Fatehpur, Sushant said that all MLAs should give up their pension as government employees recruited after 2004 are also not entitled to old pension scheme. He said that 90,000 government employees in state would get pension of just Rs 3,000 to Rs 4,000 after serving for decades in government service. How is this justified that the government employees would hardly get any pension while MLAs would get pension of about Rs 80,000 even if he has stayed a member of legislative assembly even for a day.

Sushant said that he had given up his pension as an MLA of Himachal assembly and MP in August last year in support of the demand of government employees covered under new pension scheme. Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur has been keeping quiet about the demand of employees despite the fact that they are sitting on dharna for the last many months in Shimla.

Sushant said that there were several issues being faced by the people of Fatehpur assembly constituency. These include issue of Pong Dam oustees who have been fighting for their rights for their rights with the Rajasthan government for past many decades. The oustees used to till lands on the banks of Pong Dam lake during summers when the water level goes down. However, now the forest department has barred them from tilling those lands, he said.

Sushant, who was former BJP MP, had quit the party and joined AAP as state president. He lost the last assembly elections from Fatehpur. He is now expected to contest the assembly bypoll from Fatehpur.