FREEBIES ROUTE TO POWER

With elections round the corner, parties are rolling out a slew of welfare schemes to woo voters. The growing focus on 'freebies' has sparked sharp debates over fiscal sustainability and poll promises

- Anup Verma and Ashish Srivastava

AS the Assembly poll storm cloud gathers over the Capital skies, it is once again raining 'freebies' on the voter. AAP finds itself in familiar territory, doling out amenities to woo the city electorate. In spite of their 'staunch opposition' of the AAP government's 'revdi culture', the BJP and the Congress too are no strangers to 'welfare schemes' involving distribution of 'freebies'. In fact, the lucrative 'Mahila Samman' cash transfer scheme touted by the AAP finds resonance in similar cash benefits being doled out in several BJP-ruled states, including Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Experts believe, the AAP is setting the narrative for the polls by promising free amenities to the voter, and in order to tilt the odds in their favour, the BJP and the Congress too would have to toe the lines of the incumbent ruling party, and come up with similar schemes.

Arvind Kejriwal's tryst with 'freebies' goes a long way back; a year after forming the AAP, it's national convener Kejriwal, in 2013, promised to provide 20,000 litre of domestic-use water and 200 units of electricity free of cost every month to every Delhi household. During his 49-day stint as the Chief Minister between December 2013 and February 2014, Kejriwal delivered on both promises. His track record in fulfilling 'free stuff' schemes brought him 67 out of 70 Assembly seats in the Capital in 2015 elections.

The AAP got unprecedented support from Delhi voters, a big thumbs up for its 'freebie-based welfare model'. Riding on the support of such 'populist' policies, the AAP got another sheer majority in the 2020 Assembly polls, securing 62 out of the 70 seats. 'Free schemes' continued. From 2013 to 2024, the Kejriwal-led dispensation dished out free everything - water, electricity, health, education, bus rides for women and 'teerath yatra' for the elderly.