Gullible people are forced to vote for the party that accepts the gifts. It is very troubling that the gift culture has come to stay in the electoral and political system thanks to the cheap giveaway policy.
The poll giveaways that have become so common to political parties can very well be called political giveaways. These gifts are very undesirable for the political economy and the country in the final analysis and therefore political parties should refrain from using poll gifts to woo voters as this may prove unhealthy politics and economy of the country. Since today, almost all political parties resort to gift politics to woo the electorate and usurp power by hook or crook and hence political parties do not hesitate to use gifts to win election battles.
Gullible people are forced to vote for the party that accepts the gifts. It is very troubling that the culture of freebies has come to remain in the electoral and political system through the cheap giveaway policy resorted to by political parties despite the fact that such freebies run counter to economic stability and country policy. Here it is relevant to know what the gifts actually mean. The freebies are the free supply of electricity, water supply, monthly allowances to the unemployed, daily wage earners in the form of gadgets like laptops, smartphones, etc. In order to guarantee the vote of the people. Election after election, new free polls are announced by political parties to attract voters and win the elections without worrying about its adverse effects on the politics and economy of the state.
Since free polls go against the political and economic interests of the country, necessary measures must be taken to discourage the politics of giveaways for the benefit of the people and the country. Citizens must be made aware of their role and responsibility in democracy and must not be deceived and lured by cunning political parties into voting for them. The government is required to organize information and sensitization programs on the pitfalls and disadvantages of survey gifts so that people realize and understand for themselves the pitfalls of the culture of gifts and refrain from letting themselves carried away by gifts. NGOs and other voluntary associations have an important responsibility to awaken people and sensitize them to the undesirability of the culture of gratuity so that the era of gratuity in Indian politics will soon be over. This will pave the way for clean elections away from the use and abuse of poll giveaways, so the era of giveaways will be over.
The populous schemes and promises of political parties and their implementation by the executive thus formed constitute a big problem in the political system of the country. Populous programs, schemes and promises eat away at the vital elements of the economy and the state and therefore political parties should not make giveaways a part of their electoral strategy but refrain from resorting to gifts from polls in their own long-term interest and also of the country. It’s so bad that there is a policy of one-upmanship between the different political parties when it comes to free polls. Almost all political parties use and abuse giveaways to the hilt in order to cultivate political dividends. Thus, there appears to be competition between political parties over the use of free polls to garner votes and secure political space for their parties. The culture of giveaways has rendered great harm and disadvantage to the country and the sooner the people and the political parties realize the limitations and demerits of poll giveaways, the better for the country and the voters. Giveaways have polluted our electoral democracy as poll giveaways are used and abused by political parties without exception to garner votes no matter how badly it may harm our economy and the theme of the welfare state.
People should be well informed and educated and they should be able to tell the difference between the good and the bad of free polls and should not be lured by cunning political satraps and political parties. The government, the CIS, the judiciary and the press should take notice of the culture of freebies and make concerted and sincere efforts to curb the growing trend of freebies for the benefit of the country and its electorate. The ECI, which is a constitutional and independent body, should clamp down on political parties using and abusing gifts to mislead voters into voting in their favour. The ECI, which is directly responsible for the conduct of free and fair elections, should use its august functions and role and try to heal the culture of giveaways in the best interests of the state and democracy. The Electoral Commission should order the government and political parties not to use free polls, as these negate the main purpose of democracy and elections, as the giveaways amount to an attack on political and economic policy of the country and should therefore be avoided as much as possible in the interest of a clean and just policy.
The AAP and its leader Kejriwal are masters of free polls as the party made cheap and popular promises in previous Delhi elections and won the election. The PAA promised and gave free electricity to the people of Punjab and wrested power from congress over the poll gifts of free electricity and free education and even jobs for unemployed youths. Now, the same culture of free will be tested in the upcoming assembly elections in Gujarat, where the AAP is making serious efforts to seize power and be an alternative to the BJP. After all, voters need to be well-informed and educated so as not to get carried away with cheap and populous diets and giveaways and vote for honest candidates.
Previously, the AAP could be singled out for giveaways, but today almost all political parties are naked in the hamam and one cannot distinguish between parties when it comes to poll giveaways. The ECI and the government should take practical steps to curb the culture of poll giveaways so that political parties begin to discourage the use of giveaways to lure voters. The CIS should warn political parties against using and indulging in giveaways as it is against the interests of the countries. Gifts are also promised and, in some cases, fulfilled by governments. The collapse of the Sri Lankan economy due to the weight of gifts has forced India to play down the problem of gifts. Over the years, gifts have become an integral part of politics in India, whether for making pledges in the election battle or giving gifts to stay in power. States have become accustomed to giving freebies, whether in the form of loan waivers or free electricity, bicycles, laptops, televisions, and more.
Expenses are on such and other elements of populist pressures or with elections in mind are questionable. The disadvantages of gifts can be listed as follows: -1-Gifts are macro economically unstable. Spending remains concentrated on grants of one type or another. 2 – This has an impact on the tax situation of the States. 3 – Gifts are against free and fair elections. 4 – Freebies have a debilitating effect on manufacturing. This diminishes the quality and competitiveness of the manufacturing sector. 6-The last but not the least of the gifts destroys the whole culture of credit. To conclude, it can be estimated that the culture of gifts has come to stay in the political system and that it is absolutely necessary to curb the growing trend of gifts for the good of the country. Gifts are a blight on the political economy of the country and therefore deserve to be reduced in the interests of the state.
Email:——[email protected]
