Sops-for-votes pushing nation to brink

Tall talk and no real action that is what has become the order of the day in governance. Many leaders and their followers may not like this 'Bold' statement but then that is the order of the day and no political party is an exception.

The country's economy is in the red, thanks to announcements of freebies and sops, which has become a new tool to woo the voters. The situation can only be altered if the BJP government at the Centre, which claims to be the only party which has the courage to take firm decisions, comes up with effective amendments and announce a total ban on freebies to gain undue political mileage. The Election Commission should monitor the violations with suitable deterrent measures.

What started with the slogan of 'Garibi Hatao' in seventies has taken different forms and the political parties are now announcing freebies, sops and other allurements for voters without caring for the economy or good governance. The entire focus of budget preparation is also aimed at how to lure certain sections of the society and come back to power. "To hell with economy, it is votes that matter," is the attitude. This has pushed the country into red and the leaders need to answer how there can be good governance when the economy is not buoyant? Free power, free water, free housing etc., are sure to push the economy into deeper trouble sooner than later and that is what is happening now in most states including the two Telugu States.

There are any number of examples where freebies did bring the political parties to power with thumping majority, whether it be the AAP in Delhi or DMK or AIADMK in Tamil Nadu or the YSRCP in Andhra Pradesh and TRS in Telangana. I am sure there would be some who would react, saying that all this is part of welfare measures to uplift the poor and downtrodden. But is it really so? In the past, there was something known as an element of subsidy for certain public services and all governments across the country used to follow it. The universally accepted principle is that you have to pay for what you use. It is true that even the so-called freebies the parties are announcing are not free in real terms. Even the beneficiaries are paying for them indirectly as it leads to higher taxes and high prices of all commodities.

So, whom are we fooling? Why not be more practical and see that the poor get benefit and the economy is not pushed into red. It's time the intelligentsia, the Babus (IAS officers who are supposed to be eyes and ears of the government) seriously think and advise the governments accordingly. (Of course, this may not happen in the near future as bureaucracy these days has stopped being proactive and they no longer call a spade a spade).

There is need for subsidy for the needy. But what is required is to know who is needy. All freebies are based on caste and community and welfare of the ruling party. What exactly is happening is that all such announcements are made closer to elections and they may have larger impact in terms of voting but in terms of economy it is adversely affecting the revenues. Instead of boosting economic activity, they are affecting fiscal prudence.

It's time the ruling parties learn to be practical and offer freebies to people only if the governments have resources to do that. The Telangana government is contemplating a Rs 2.5 lakh crore budget for 2022-23. It may show figures on paper but the fact is that it is not possible to generate the kind of revenue it would claim to meet the grand election-oriented schemes like Dalit Bandhu.

Another interesting factor that has now come to light is that the TRS government does not have any proper data of Rythu Bandhu scheme. It has been a 'Bandhu' even for Ganja cultivators. This, the Chief Minister himself admitted on Friday when he directed officials to see that the Ganja cultivators do not get the benefits of Rythu Bandhu.

The political party leaders who claim that they are epitomes of intelligence should understand that the state must perform its essential duties like running the administration and managing economic policy. It is high time the leaders and their parties resist the urge of announcing freebies.

In 2013, the Akhilesh Yadav government in Uttar Pradesh announced an ambitious free laptop scheme for students that many believed won him great political capital, particularly amongst the youth. But what happened is history. It cost the exchequer Rs 900 crore and many did not even get the laptops. This time, the TRS may announce such a scheme, saying it would help the English medium students in government schools.

According to experts, the same argument holds true for the income guarantee scheme announced by the Narendra Modi government in its 2019 Interim Budget that gives Rs 6,000 per farmer costing a whopping Rs 72,000 crore. The scheme warranted a complete overhaul of India's subsidy mechanism (power/fertilisers/taxes for rich farmers, etc, but instead it simply gave "over and above" the existing subsidy framework.

This mad race for freebies leads to ignoring other important development projects which could have long-lasting advantages. What is needed is measures to ensure higher per capita income, not higher per capita usage of goods or services. This can happen only when political parties stop viewing people as just voters.

It is this narrow-minded attitude of announcing freebies for electoral gains which has kept India far behind many countries across the globe and particularly in Asia in terms of social parameters. People too should understand what they are losing by accepting the mindless freebies. Most of the announcements about freebies may not even be fulfilled but still people are falling prey to the allurement. This practice is damaging the electoral democracy. What people should do is, demand and force parties to give good governance, and not fall prey to their enticements. The whole spectrum of political parties needs to be blamed for this.

The Election Commission of India, too, has a major role to play in preventing such damage to democracy. If TN Seshan and James Michel Lyngdoh could bring some kind of discipline among political parties, why not the successive ECs? It should act tough and control the menace of electoral malpractices.

The governments of the day should strive for providing better facilities in government hospitals, provide healthy and hygienic food, safe drinking water instead of promising laptops, mobiles, gold chains or silver ornaments. The political parties have no business to spend public money for their narrow political gains.

The BJP government at the Centre now should go in for strong electoral reforms even if it has to sacrifice some states or seats in the long-term interest of the country. It should make it mandatory for all political parties to get the manifesto approved by the Election Commission of India which should have a team of experts to wet it.

What is happening now is that neither the freebies are reaching the targeted audience nor are the governments able to provide basic amenities to the general public. This is pushing the governments into difficult financial situation and they are going in for more and more borrowing and the economy which is already in red is getting derailed beyond repair.

What our politicians fail to understand is that they are playing with the democratic values and are resorting to unethical practices which includes note-for-vote. This is not only affecting the moral fabric of the country but is also destroying the democratic principles and the spirit of Constitution. The past performance of the government or the aspirations of the voters is no more reflected in the elections. No one feels accountable for what they had promised and failed to implement in the last manifesto. People, too, are not bothered about it and only look forward to more freebies the parties announce in their latest manifesto. This being the situation, there is no scope for free and fair polls, and they cannot be free from undue influences. This attitude of freebies, politicians and bureaucracy should understand, exposes the fact that the governments of the day have no vision and have no interest in carrying infrastructural development and create a proper environment for employment generation, growth in business and commerce etc.

The BJP government at Centre, too, should ponder over such issues and show the courage to see that systemic corrections are taken to ensure that the spirit of Constitution is not affected. Only then the slogan of Bharat Mata Ki Jai would make real sense.