Moscow, Mar 26 (IANS/RIA Novosti): Russian lawmakers have been urged to smarten up their act and avoid wearing jeans and T-shirts while working in parliament.

United Russia party deputy Alexander Degtyaryev, who heads the State Duma ethics committee, said the legislature was not a place for "slackness".

"Jeans are also trousers, but when they are worn together with a jacket and a T-shirt, it's pretty hard to call this a suit," Degtyaryev said.

Staunch government critic Ilya Ponomaryov was singled out for criticism by Degtyaryev, who recalled an occasion when the A Just Russia party member came to work in a T-shirt bearing a political message.

Ponomaryov, who aligned himself with the street protest movement that arose in the wake of the 2011 elections that ensured United Russia's majority in parliament, has received similar criticism before.

Degtyaryev insisted he was not calling for a dress code for lawmakers.

His predecessor in the committee, Vladimir Pekhtin, resigned after facing accusations of owning undeclared luxury properties in the US.

Pekhtin denies the allegations, saying the properties belonged to his son.