In the run-up to every election in India, political parties roll out a dazzling menu of promises like free electricity, free bus rides, cash transfers, laptops, gold chains, and even pressure cookers. These ‘freebies’ have become the heartbeat of campaign speeches, turning elections into auctions of public money. What starts as a vote-catching tactic ends up as a heavy burden on the nation’s finances.

As the Supreme Court sharply observed in February 2026, this culture of indiscriminate giveaways is not just fiscally reckless, it is quietly reshaping India’s work ethic, development priorities, and long-term economic health. While welfare for the truly needy is essential, the competitive race to offer more and more for free risks turning citizens into passive recipients rather than active participants in nation-building. The roots of freebie politics run deep.

It began in Tamil Nadu in the 1950s when Chief Minister K. Kamaraj introduced free midday meals and education in schools to boost enrolment. The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) later turned it into an art form in the 1960s and 1970s, promising colour televisions, mixers and grinders. Other southern states followed and soon the trend spread nationwide. Today, almost every major party, whether in power at the Centre or in states, includes a long list of free schemes in its manifesto. What was once limited to necessities has ballooned into expensive, open-ended commitments like free power for all, loan waivers, and direct cash to women voters.

The line between genuine welfare and electoral bribery has blurred dangerously. This is not unique to India, but the scale and consequences differ sharply from other countries. Developed nations like those in Scandinavia run robust welfare states with universal healthcare, free education and generous unemployment support. Yet those systems rest on high taxes, strong productivity and transparent fiscal discipline. Their ‘freebies’ are not last-minute poll promises but carefully budgeted, outcome-linked policies. In contrast, many developing countries that tried similar giveaway models, think Venezuela or parts of Latin America, faced debt crises, hyperinflation and collapsed public services.

India’s version sits somewhere in between: it provides short-term relief to millions but does so by borrowing heavily, often without proper targeting or sunset clauses. The result is a slow bleed on public resources rather than a sustainable safety net. The impact on elections is unmistakable and deeply worrying. Freebies have become the new currency of political power. In the recent Bihar assembly polls, a Rs 10,000 annual cash transfer to women helped drive record female turnout and swung results in favour of the ruling alliance. Across states, parties that promise the most visible handouts often win, even if their fiscal math does not add up.

Voters, especially from poorer sections, respond to immediate benefits they can feel in their pockets or kitchens. This creates a vicious cycle: parties compete to outdo each other, manifestos grow longer with unviable promises and governance after victory becomes an exercise in damage control. Elections are no longer fought only on governance records or vision; they are increasingly decided by who offers the sweetest short-term deal. The Supreme Court has repeatedly flagged this dangerous trend. In February 2026, while hearing a case on free electricity in Tamil Nadu, the bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant slammed states for running revenue deficits yet continuing to announce lavish schemes.

“Not a single penny is left for development,” the court observed, questioning how states could fund roads, schools or hospitals when so much money goes into free power, food and gadgets. The judges warned that blanket freebies, without distinguishing between those who can afford to pay and those who cannot, amount to an ‘appeasing policy’ that harms the work culture. They urged governments to create employment opportunities instead of handing out freebies ‘from morning to evening.’ Earlier observations in 2022 had already pushed the Election Commission to think about guidelines for manifestos but the problem has only grown louder. The societal costs run far deeper than balance sheets.

Freebies foster a culture of dependency. When people receive free electricity or rations without any contribution, the incentive to work harder or upgrade skills weakens. Labour force participation drops, especially among the young. Resources that should go into building factories, improving irrigation or upgrading colleges are diverted to subsidies. Private investment suffers because high fiscal deficits lead to higher taxes or crowding out of credit. Cross-subsidisation makes paying consumers foot the bill for free users, distorts markets and breeds inefficiency.

Over time, this creates intergenerational inequity: today’s generation enjoys short-term comforts while tomorrow’s inherits mounting debt and crumbling infrastructure. The numbers paint a sobering picture of the national loan burden. India’s total public debt ~ central and state combined – stands at around Rs 197 lakh crore at the end of 2025-26, projected to cross Rs 214 lakh crore by March 2027. This translates to a per capita debt burden of roughly Rs 1.38 lakh on every Indian citizen. The central government’s debt-to-GDP ratio hovers around 56 per cent, with a medium-term target to bring it down to 50 per cent by 2030. But states are in even worse shape. Punjab carries the heaviest relative burden, with debt at nearly 47 per cent of its Gross State Domestic Product.

West Bengal follows at around 40 per cent. Other high-burden states include Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Rajasthan, Bihar and Tamil Nadu, where interest payments alone eat up 25 to 40 per cent of their own revenue. In Punjab and West Bengal, more than a third of every rupee earned goes just to service old loans. This leaves precious little for new hospitals, skill centres or industrial parks. India urgently needs to discourage this freebie culture before it becomes irreversible.

The first step is to draw a clear line between targeted welfare for the genuinely poor and blanket populism that benefits even the well-off. Political parties must be held accountable for the fiscal cost of every promise. The Election Commission and the Supreme Court could consider stronger guidelines that require parties to explain how they will fund their schemes without pushing states into unsustainable debt. Voters, too, have a role: they must begin asking tougher questions about long-term development rather than settling for immediate goodies.

The way forward lies in shifting focus to genuine developmental activities. Instead of free power, invest in reliable 24×7 electricity through renewable energy projects that create jobs. Rather than loan waivers, strengthen farm incomes through better irrigation, market access, and crop insurance. Cash transfers should be linked to skill training or women’s entrepreneurship programmes so they become stepping stones, not permanent crutches. Massive public investment in quality education, healthcare, roads and digital infrastructure will generate far more lasting employment and growth than any giveaway. States that have shown fiscal prudence such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, and Karnataka prove that responsible budgeting and pro-growth policies can deliver both welfare and progress without mortgaging the future.

Freebies may win elections in the short run but they are quietly mortgaging India’s tomorrow. A nation of 1.4 billion ambitious people cannot afford to be lulled into dependency. If political leaders truly care about the poor, they must move beyond the politics of distribution and embrace the harder but far more rewarding politics of creation, building an economy where every citizen has the opportunity and dignity of earning a good life, not just receiving one for free. The choice is clear: continue the sweet trap of freebies or invest boldly in real development that lifts everyone without breaking the nation’s back. India’s future depends on which path its leaders and its voters choose today.

(The writer is a former college Principal and Founder of Supporting Shoulders)

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