NEW DELHI: BJP MP in the Lok Sabha Varun Gandhi , on Tuesday demanded an external independent body, comprising members from outside Parliament, to determine salaries of MPs and suggested that the members must forgo their privileges (perks and salaries) in view of the economic conditions of poor and underprivileged citizens.Raising the issue in the Zero Hour in the Lok Sabha, he said, "Giving ourselves the authority to increase our own fiscal compensation is not in line with the morals of our democracy.""For the greater good of this nation, we must create an external body, independent of us members, to determine salaries. Or, if we self-regulate, considering the economic conditions of the last man in society, we must empathetically forgo our privileges, at least for the duration of this parliament", said Gandhi.Requesting members to forgo their privileges, he even cited example of such decision taken under the first Prime Minister of India, Jawaharlal Nehru, when the entire Cabinet in its very first meeting had decided not to avail salaries for six months in view of the "economic suffering of the citizens at the time".Gandhi, while making his submission, highlighted the recent decision of doubling the salaries of its legislators by the Tamil Nadu Assembly and questioned such act where MLAs or MPs themselves raise their salaries.Noting that a farmer from Tamil Nadu tried to take his own life in the national Capital a few weeks ago in order to register his protest against the suffering of farmers in the state and even members of the same group demonstrated skulls of fellow farmers who had committed suicide to make their point strongly, Gandhi expressed his concerns that the Tamil Nadu Assembly still in a "brazenly insensitive act" doubled the salaries of its legislators."When matters regarding salary are raised recurrently, it makes me worry about the moral compass of the House. Nearly 18,000 farmers have committed suicide over the last one year. Where is our focus?" asked the BJP member.Questioning such act of Tamil Nadu Assembly, the BJP member urged the House to take lessons from the past. He cited examples of members of the Constituent Assembly, like Biswanath Das from Odisha, who chose to draw only Rs 25 a day instead of Rs 45 a day, which they were entitled to, saying that he did not need/require any more. Similarly, V I Muniswami Pillai, in 1949, moved a motion in the Madras Assembly to impose a voluntary cut of Rs 5 per diem in recognition of the suffering of the farmers. The Assembly had then unanimously passed the motion.Demanding an independent body to determine salaries of MPs, Gandhi referred to such mechanism followed by the Parliament in United Kingdom where, he said, an independent authority – Review Body on Senior Salaries – consisting of distinguished non-members, advise the government on the pay and pensions of MPs. This authority takes into account the recommendations of both the beneficiaries and the public. It then checks the validity and affordability of these recommendations."Such a mechanism does not exist in our nation, sadly", said the BJP member while noting that the salaries of MPs in India were increased by 400% in the last decade as compared to 13% rise in the UK.Referring to the view of Mahatma Gandhi on the issue who had expressed that the allowances drawn by the MPs and various Assemblies must be in proportion to the services rendered to the nation, the BJP member wondered whether this should not be the case now."If we look at our performance over the last two decades, barely 50% of the bills have been passed after scrutiny from Parliamentary Committees. When bills pass without serious deliberation, it defeats the purpose of having a Parliament. The House itself has been created to dissect, analyse, debate laws, and ensure that every law has a strong policy mechanism behind it. The rush to pass bills shows a priority for politics and not policy. Total 41% of bills introduced have been passed without discussion", he said.He said, "I don’t want to bring up the issues of MPs taking cash for asking questions or cash for votes, but I must lastly add that from a number of sittings in the Lok Sabha of 123 days a year in 1952, we dropped to 75 in 2016. Sessions like the Winter Session of 2016 hit a low-point of 16%. It is shameful. Taxation bills, as significant as Aadhaar, were passed within two weeks without being referred to a committee".Touching upon arguments in certain quarters that the MPs should be paid in line with the private sector, Varun Gandhi said, "Those employed in the private sector are driven primarily by their self-interest. Ours is a service to the nation, a mission to make this the India of our dreams. To compare these two motives is to misunderstand the commitment to public life".