JP Nadda
BJP president JP Nadda. File photo

BJP president Jagat Prakash Nadda on Saturday said all party MPs and MLAs must contribute their one-month salaries to the central relief fund to fight COVID19 pandemic.

He also said the BJP MPs must also release Rs 1 crore from their annual development fund to the central relief fund as well.

“All MPs & MLAs of Bhartiya Janta Party will donate their one-month remuneration /salary to the Central relief fund to support the fight against COVID-19. All MPs of BJP will release 1 crore from their MPLADS fund to the Central Relief Fund in support to fight against Covid-19,” a media report quoted Nadda as saying.

The party currently has 386 MPs including 303 in the Lok Sabha and 83 in the Rajya Sabha.

An MP gets Rs 5 crore every year as part of the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS).

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said people from all walks of life have expressed their desire to donate to India’s war against COVID19.

For that reason, a new public charitable trust – Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES)- has been constituted.

The primary objective of this charitable trust is to deal with any kind of emergency or distress situation, like posed by the COVID19 pandemic, and to provide relief to the affected.

Prime Minister will be the chairman of this trust and its members include the Union defence minister, home minister and finance minister.

Meanwhile, the number of COVID19 positive cases in India jumped to 944 on Saturday.

The death toll due to COVID19 in the country also increased to 21 on Saturday.