Nirmala Sitharaman: Freebies should be sustainable, governments must not put a burden on future generations: FM Sitharaman

Amid political controversies surrounding the sustainability of freebies offered by governments, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in an interview said that such a promise should be sustainable and prove to be a burden on future generations.“You (political parties) may probably justify giving a freebie today. In a public position, who is answerable to taxpayers, you have to be clear that collecting tax from someone and giving it to somebody else, however deserving that person may be, should be sustainable,” Sitharaman told TOI in an interview a day after presenting the Union Budget 2024.

Sitharaman stressed that a government should be able to generate “adequate” revenue from providing primary requirements of a society like drinking water, electricity, primary health and education.

Read More: After setback in Lok Sabha polls in Maharashtra, Maha Yuti govt presents ‘freebie budget’Sitharaman said that people should take the benefit of something being given for free; however, it is the government’s responsibility to ensure the scheme does not adversely affect other taxpayers.

“You have to be honest in ensuring that you don’t borrow left, right, and centre and leave a generation on the future generation,” she said.

Sitharaman on Karnataka government’s schemes

The Congress government came to power in Karnataka on the back of five promises including cash transfers, and free bus rides for women, among other schemes, amid severe political scrutiny.

Sitharaman said that people should take the benefit of something being given for free; however, it is the government’s responsibility to ensure the scheme does not adversely affect other taxpayers.

“Look at what is happening in Karnataka. They must honour their electoral promises without saying they don’t have money for development,” she said.

Read More: Rs 62,000 Crore Freebies: Congress win might cost Karnataka this much every year

Sitharaman added, “Why should people not take the benefits of something being given for free? Buses in Karnataka are full of women who you don’t want to pay, and I don’t blame them (the women). But when you charge men double for it, eventually, it’s the family paying for it.”

The BJP has, in the past, repeatedly attacked opposition parties such as the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party over allotting freebie schemes as a part of their poll promises during election campaigns.

Politicians ki guarantee: Freebie or welfare scheme?

In the interview, the FM called for an ‘honest’ debate around freebies.

“You need an honest debate on how far one can go. It is not easy to say that your freebie is unacceptable while defending my own as a welfare measure,” she said.

Policymakers, including the Supreme Court of India, have often found it difficult to clearly differentiate between freebies and welfare schemes.

Read More: Budget 2024: Freebies or welfare schemes, what can the Modi government opt for?

“Freebies and the social welfare scheme are different…The economy losing money and the welfare of people, both have to be balanced and that is why, this debate. There must be someone who can put their vision and thoughts. Please submit something before my retirement,” CJI DY Chandrachud had said during a hearing on the matter in August 2022.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi came down heavily on the Aam Aadmi Party in Delhi for their ‘freebies’, or ‘revdis’.

Read More: Why should reforms now be a problem? Freebies, promised or delivered, didn’t work. Labour, trade, education & privatisation reforms await

“These days in our country, efforts are being made to distribute revdi (freebies) and gather votes. This revdi culture is detrimental to the country’s development. People, especially youth, need to be wary of this,” Modi said at a speech last year. “People endorsing this culture will never make new expressways for you, nor will they make new airports or defence corridors.