The family of the veteran BJP leader Arun Jaitley, who recently passed away after a prolonged illness, has refused the pension which was due after the former finance minister’s demise. Arun Jaitley’s wife Sangeeta Jaitley on Monday wrote to Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu, refusing the pension which was due.
In a letter penned by Sangeeta Jaitley, which was also marked to PM Modi, the former Union Minister’s widow requested the pension due of Arun Jaitley to be transferred to the less paid Class IV employees of Rajya Sabha. She cited Jaitley’s “philanthropic past” as grounds for refusing the pension.
The BJP stalwart breathed his last on August 24 at Delhi’s All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) after suffering from a prolonged illness. He was admitted to the hospital on August 9 after he had complained of breathlessness and uneasiness.
According to the Salary and Allowances of Members of Parliament Act, a former MP is entitled to a minimum pension of Rs 20,000 per month and an additional pension of Rs 1,500 per month for every year served as member of either Houses for a period exceeding five years. Jaitley has been a Rajya Sabha member since 1999 which qualified him to receive an additional Rs 22500 per month. The total monthly pension entitled to Arun Jaitley would have been around Rs 47500.
However, Family pension to spouse or dependent of a member or ex-MP is equal to 50 per cent of the pension otherwise sanctioned to such departed member/ex-MP. Thus, Arun Jaitley’s family was eligible to get about Rs 25000 per month or Rs 3 lakh per annum as pension.
