Competitive populism could hurt the Indian economy
Live MintThe economy did not play a big role in the Bharatiya Janata Party forming a government in Karnataka, but may have in its defeat. For, if political analysts have got it right, then the bigger worry for the economy is the rural Karnataka voters’ snub to the BJP’s brand of welfarism. In the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Odisha and Telangana state governments tried to relieve rural distress and improve agriculture’s viability by giving money to farmers. In Karnataka, the Congress government decided on its first day in office to implement its campaign promises: 200 units free electricity per month to every household, ₹2,000 every month to every women head of a family, 10kg of rice every month to every member of below-poverty-line families, ₹3,000 to all unemployed graduates, ₹1,500 to all 18-25 year-old unemployed diploma holders every month for two years and free travel for women in public transport buses. In its 2019 Lok Sabha campaign, the Congress had promised income support under its Nyuntam Aay Yojana of ₹72,000 a year to India’s poorest families.
History of this topic
The Indian economy is yet to fully escape the state’s shackles
Live Mint
Jaishankar in Bengaluru | EAM accuses Congress government in Karnataka of indulging in “competitive populism”
The Hindu
Is there more room for competitive populism?
Hindustan Times
The BJP presents its 2024 plan
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Incompetence of BJP govt has pushed back progressive economy, says Congress
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