Karnataka Books In Red, Lawmakers Give Themselves A Big Pay Hike

Salaries and allowances of Chief Minister, Ministers and legislators have been enhanced amid a major budget deficit of Rs 15,134 crore.

The lawmakers of Karnataka united to give themselves a pay hike of more than 40 per cent as the budget session of the assembly came to an end on Tuesday. Salaries and allowances of Chief Minister, Ministers and legislators have been enhanced amid a major budget deficit of Rs 15,134 crore.

The hikes will result in a recurring, additional expenditure of approximately Rs 92.4 crore per annum.

The state assembly passed the two bills without discussion on Tuesday - during a brief lull amid weeklong protests by the Congress. Cutting across political boundaries, the MLAs approved the hike that is pushing up their salary from Rs 25,000 to Rs 40,000.

The Karnataka Ministers Salaries and Allowances (Amendment) Bill, 2022 and The Karnataka Legislature Salaries, Pensions and Allowances (Amendment) Bill, 2022, were moved by the government, which said they have been pending for long.