Referring to ``the unseemly row'' in the Lok Sabha on Dec 7, he said the courts have rightly interpreted the provisions of the Constitution in coming down on the unjustified patronage sought to be enjoyed by the legislators.In a statement issued yesterday, Subramaniam said in matters outside the strict purview of their duties as members of the legislatures, MPs and MLAs have no right to be treated differently from other citizens. ``They are elected not to feather their own nests with powers of patronage, but to show diligence in making of the laws and in ensuring effective performance of the Government.''

Subramaniam also objected to the Rs 1-crore funding facility to the MPs for schemes determined bythem ``on personal preference''. The selection of the schemes, he said, did not necessarily reflect national priorities. In such preferential schemes at the disposal of MPs and MLAs, besides lack of transparency, there is no adequate guarantee of supervision and control in implementation, he pointed out.

Expressing his apprehension that the discretionary quotas for legislators, entailing a sum of Rs 4,000 crore, can be misappropriated, Subramaniam appealed to the presiding officers of Parliament and State legislatures ``to discontinue practices which are prima facie indefensible.''