VOTES OF THANKS

Freebies are a tricky issue for all parties, and the wrangle over them is unlikely to be settled soon

- PRATUL SHARMA

In 2016, Prime Minister Narendra Modi ignited a national debate on holding elections simultaneously to the Lok Sabha and state assemblies with a catchy slogan: 'one nation, one election'. It made financial sense, as thousands of crores of rupees are spent on elections. Though the Election Commission acquiesced in the idea, it was rejected by the opposition parties, especially the regional parties which saw it as an assault on federalism and an attempt to undermine them.

As the nation moves towards another round of assembly elections, and with the 2024 Lok Sabha polls in sight, the BJP has riled the opposition parties again by igniting a debate on freebies. Modi derided them as revdi (sweetmeat made of jaggery and sesame seeds, usually consumed in the winter)—the crumbs promised during election campaigns like free power and water, with little long-term benefits.

Unlike the idea of 'one nation, one election', which moved through a slow consultative process (the Law Commission will study it), the issue of freebies has been fast-tracked, as the matter was taken up by the Supreme Court on a PIL filed by Ashwini Upadhyay, a BJP member who started his political career with the Aam Aadmi Party. “We want the court to set up a panel to examine the practice of making electoral commitments (freebies) without adequate budgetary provisions,” he said. “There should be a comprehensive policy to reduce debt to GSDP ratio of the states; and an economic impact assessment module should be published before any freebies are announced or distributed by the political parties, and even the source of revenue generation should be disclosed.”