Plea in SC seeks ban on political parties which promise freebies in election manifestos

An intervention plea was filed in the Supreme Court on Saturday by Pahle India Foundation, formed by Ex-NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Dr. Rajiv Kumar back in 2013, seeking a ban on political parties which promise freebies in their election manifestos. The plea noted several states, including Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Rajasthan, and others being in fragile economic conditions owing to the prevalence of subsidies in various sectors.

New Delhi: A fresh intervention application has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking ban on political parties that promise freebies in their election manifestos. The IA, filed by the Pahle India Foundation, a not-for-profit company established in 2013 by ex-NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Dr. Rajiv Kumar, contends that power sector has been impacted adversely due to states offering freebies.

In this regard, the states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Telangana have been stated by the applicant as financially fragile owing to offering the highest subsidies.

"These states have over time accumulated massive outstanding liabilities, which as a present of Gross State Domestic Product(GSDP) is beyond the 20% limit on state outstanding liability as per FRBM Review committee refers to report titled "Responsive Growth: A Debt and Fiscal Framework for 21st Century India" the application read.

The applicant further contended that despite the term 'freebie' not being defined in the Constitution, any promise made with the sole intent of luring voters is fraud and should be interpreted as such.

"The power sector has been sacrificed at the cost of freebies in many states. Thus, free electricity should be brought under the ambit of Section 123 of Representation of People Act,1951 as a corrupt practice," the applicant further prayed.

It also sought directions to cover freebie promises as offence under section 171B and 171C of the Indian Penal Code, 1860. It also sought a report from High Powered Committee including expert members from the field of Judiciary Economics and Public Policy to examine the issue and submit a detailed report on the matter.