New Delhi : The Supreme Court, while hearing a demand for de-recognition of political parties announcing freebies to woo voters during elections, asked the Centre to list states which are already indebted and if implementation of free schemes can be stopped or not. Next hearing of the case will be on August 3.
The court had issued notices to the central government and the Election Commission on January 25. Petition has been filed by BJP leader and Advocate Ashwini Upadhyay. The petition stated that political parties make announcements of free gifts to entice voters in their favour, doing so is an obstacle to free and fair elections and an offence under Sections 171B and 171C of the Indian Penal Code.
The petition has demanded that the court should issue guidelines to the Election Commission to add an additional condition for political parties that they will not make announcements of giving gifts for free. The petition said that nowadays it has become a fashion that political parties declare free electricity in their manifestos. These announcements are made even when the government is not able to provide even 16 hours of electricity to the people. Free announcements have nothing to do with employment, development or improvement in agriculture of the people but such magical announcements are made just to woo the voters.