Can freebies help Congress win Karnataka election?

As Karnataka elections draws close, it's raining guarantees and freebies for voters. With an eye on first-time voters and youth, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who was on a three-day visit to poll-bound Karnataka announced that the party will offer a monthly allowance to unemployed diploma and degree holders in Karnataka under 'Yuva Nidhi' scheme if voted to power in the state.

Under "YuvaNidhi' scheme, diploma holders will get an allowance of Rs1,500 per month for two years, while graduates will receive Rs 3,000 per month.

He claimed that if Congress is voted to power in the state, it will provide jobs to 10 lakh youth in five years and assured that 2.5 lakh government vacancies would be filled up.

Congress has already promised three poll 'guarantees' - 200 units of free power to all households (Gruha Jyoti), Rs 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family (Gruha Lakshmi), and 10 kg of rice free to every member of a BPL household (Anna Bhagya), in the event of the party coming to power.

Freebie culture in India

Freebies have been a part of Indian elections for a long time now. Political parties often use freebies as a tool to woo voters and secure their support. In some cases, freebies have become a deciding factor in the electoral outcome.

The freebie culture in India began from Tamil Nadu with late Kumaraswami Kamaraj, the chief minister of erstwhile Madras state, introducing sops in the form of free education and free meals for school students.

Later, MG Ramachandran and Dravida Munnetra Kazagham founder CN Annadurai took the culture forward. In Tamil Nadu, populist measures like two-Rupee rice, laptops and farmers' loan waivers have had a history of turning around poll outcome. But will this work in Karnataka? Will voters be swayed by the freebies offered by the parties? Well, this is a million dollar question.

Can freebies help Congress win Karnataka election?

According to political pundits, freebies during elections are effectively used by all the political parties in the country. Voters who receive freebies from a particular party, do tend to vote for that party but it is not certain.

Unlike Tamil Nadu, the voters in Karnataka are pretty sensible and they have always weighed on the balance of credibility. Further, the people in the state have keenly watched governance by all the political parties and would make a wise call while electing their representatives. However, freebies could play a significant role in swaying votes this time amid staggering economy, hit by Covid pandemic.

However, a look at past experience indicates no such proof of voters being influenced by such a 'promise of largesse'.