716 DR. BABASAHEB AMBEDKAR : WRITINGS AND SPEECHES
risk of disqualification ? I want that Government should reconsider this matter. They should include a clause whereby all members who have served on all or any of the committees appointed by the Ministeries will not be considered disqualified. Or, they should include all the names of the committees. I have given two alternatives. I see no reason why the Hon. Minister should not accept one of them. Why should he leave it to somebody else, even if it be the Prsident ? He considers the receipt of fees as equivalent to holding an office of profit. I may tell him that in the Industrial Finance Corporation there are Members of Parliament who under the rules prescribed by the Finance Ministry draw Rs. 50. In some cases they drew Rs. 75. Subsequently, they agreed to Rs. 40. This is a glaring instance. They are and have been drawing Rs. 40. Will they be disqualified ? Is it fair if they are disqualified ? They were asked in writing, they were requested by the Ministry concerned to serve on this Corporation and they accepted.
Pandit Thakur Das Bhargava (Punjab) : They refunded some of the fees and those fees have been returned to them again.
Shri Sidhva: Therefore, this matter should not be treated lightly. I am very glad that Government have brought forward this Bill. It was before this House during the last Session. In fact, we wanted it to be considered along with the Bill dealing with Deputy Ministers and Ministers of State. When the new Constitution came into force we were given an assurance that the Ministers’ question would be taken up first and that the Members’ case would be considered sympathetically separately. Now this Bill should have been passed during the last Session— nearly five months back. I am very glad that it has found the first place at least now. It is not so simple a measure as Dr. Ambedkar has represented it to be. I would submit to him that the intention of Government is very clear. They do not desire that anybody should court displeasure or disqualification for no fault of theirs. If that is so, let it be made quite clear in the Bill itself. From Dr. Ambedkar’s own statement it is quite clear that some of the Members will automatically be considered for