Prime minister Manmohan Singh, Congress president Sonia Gandhi, former Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee and all right thinking persons have decried from time to time on the government putting funds in the hands of the members of parliament (MPs) to spend on development works in their constituencies.

That is why finance minister Pranab Mukherjee had been resisting for the past two years the persisting demand of the MPs to raise the MP Local Area Development (MPLAD) fund of Rs 2 crores a year an MP gets.

He, however, became a darling of all MPs who cheered with thumping of desks on Friday when he made an unexpected announcement to jack up the MPLAD fund for an MP to Rs 5 crores a year. It will be available to all 545 members of the Lok Sabha and 250 members of the Rajya Sabha, costing the tax-payer an extra Rs 2,370 crores a year.

"Honourable members cutting across party lines have been demanding increase in the allocation under the MPLAD scheme. We have considered the matter and I am happy to announce an increase in allocation of Rs. 2 crores to Rs. 5 crores," Mukherjee told the Lok Sabha while winding up an hour-long reply to debate on the union budget. The enhanced fund will be effective in the new financial year from April 1.

He, however, hastened to add that he had just received on Thursday a report on the MPLAD scheme from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) with a series of cautions. The report will be laid on the table of the house and concerns expressed and recommendations made in it will be addressed while formulating the guidelines for the enhanced allocation, the finance minister said.

Mukherjee said he was hesitant to make the announcement because of the election code of conduct that has come into force with the announcement of the assembly elections in five states. He, therefore, approached the Election Commission to know if he can announce the MPLAD fund hike and got the clearance, but with the condition that it be used only after end of May when the elections will be over.

He quoted the chief election commissioner asking him to "tell your colleagues to use this money only from end-May, though they can make commitment now."

Those opposed to the MPs getting funds to spend as they like contend that it is the responsibility of the government to spend the tax-payer's money and giving same to the MPs amounts to a sort of corruption since they are elected to Parliament to sanction funds to the government and keep a tab on the spendings instead of themselves start spending them.