Voters have right to know how parties plan to fund election freebies, says CEC Rajiv Kumar

NEW DELHI: Wondering why political parties announced “freebies” only in the run-up to polls, chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar on Monday said they came with a huge “tadka” (garnish) of populism, making it difficult for whoever was voted to power to either roll out these sops or stop the ‘freebie’ culture.

“One announcement in one state and another announcement in other states. I don’t know why one does not remember to make these announcements through five years (in between elections) but only in the last month of 15 days,” he said.

Kumar, who was fielding a query at a press conference here about “freebie culture”, acknowledged the right of political parties to make promises in the poll manifesto, but at the same time, reiterated that the voter too had a right to know when, to what extent and how these promises would be implemented.

He recalled that it was to safeguard the voter’s right to make an informed choice that the EC had last year proposed to revise its manifesto guidelines and include a proforma, requiring parties to adopt a standardised format for making disclosures regarding poll promises. This would include quantification of their intended physical coverage, availability of financial resources including the possibility of a new tax or scaling down an existing scheme, and the impact on financial sustainability measured against well-defined, quantifiable parameters.

Kumar recalled that EC has already held a consultation with political parties on the proforma and that the issue was sub-judice (before the Supreme Court). “The commission will act as soon as clarity and a decision is available on this subject,” he said. Stating that the voter had a right to know if the one making promises in the present was mortgaging future generations, the CEC said a balance had to be found between the two by letting the voter know the picture that emerged on the basis of financial fundamentals.