The bench said that in electoral democracy the true power lies with the electorate and the electorate judges the parties and candidates.
New Delhi: Chief Justice of India N V Ramana on Friday referred the petition related to “irrational election freebies” to a three-judge bench.
The bench, comprising CJI Ramana, Justice Suryakant and Justice Hima Kohli, said that in electoral democracy, the true power lies with the electorate and the electorate judges the parties and candidates.
The CJI said, “Solicitor general, Election Commission of India and other parties have said freebies may create a situation where a state may not be able to provide, that freebies provided using taxpayer funds aim to increase popularity of parties. We have considered the situation from all angles. The proof ultimately lies with the electorate. Electorate judges performance of parties.”
The Supreme Court had on Wednesday said a debate on the matter was needed for the welfare of the country. The CJI had highlighted the need to differentiate between a promise made by a politician as a ‘freebie’ and a ‘welfare scheme’.
In July, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had warned people not to fall in trap of ‘revdi culture’ or electoral freebies. He had said that the trend is not good for development. His statement, however, had created a massive political outrage as many leaders from the Opposition parties had slammed the statement.
In his address to party workers in Gujarat, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal had said, “Revdi is a prasad. We give it to the people in the form of good schools, good hospitals and free electricity.”
Claiming that Union Home Minister Amit Shah too had taken to offering freebies such as 200 units of free electricity before the West Bengal polls, Kejriwal said, “They (BJP) did it even in Himachal Pradesh but have ignored Gujarat. Because they take the people of Gujarat for granted and feel that whatever happens, they will vote for the BJP. The time has come to show the BJP your power. Vote for us and bring us to power.”
