New Delhi: The Election Commission (EC) has plans to float a consultation paper which proposes that political parties should detail the financial implications of promises made ahead of elections, while also establishing how they could be financed.

The development comes months after Prime Minister Narendra Modi derided parties for encouraging revdi or freebie culture and a case was filed in the Supreme Court by a BJP leader seeking a ban on populist measures such as promising freebies.

According to the Indian Express, the poll panel is cognisant of the fact that "there is no legislative space to define freebies or welfare" and therefore political parties should elaborate "on the rationale for announcing such promises and the financing plan".

EC sources told the newspaper that while political parties cannot be stopped from making promises, the voter also has the right to be informed and make an informed choice.

It will seek elaborate disclosures by parties and the state or Union government about how promises will be financed, which will allow voters to "compare political parties and understand if the promises can indeed be met". The chief secretary of every state and the Union finance secretary shall provide details of tax and expenditure in a specified format before elections are due.

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The EC on Tuesday wrote to political parties about providing "authentic information" to the voters to assess the financial viability of their election promises and sought their views on the issue.

“The idea is to make a physical and financial quantification of promise… if it’s a farm loan waiver, then will it be available to all farmers, or only small and marginal farmers, etc. Further, how will it be funded given the committed and developmental expenditure set aside by the state or the Centre,” an EC source told Indian Express.

According to the newspaper, the poll panel will call parties for consultation on the paper before making formal changes to the Model Code of Conduct (MCC). The MCC period may also be longer and could be imposed even before the EC announces the polling schedule, according to Indian Express.

The EC said it cannot overlook inadequate disclosures on election promises and consequential undesirable impact on financial sustainability as empty poll promises have far-reaching ramifications.

The proposed format for disclosure of election promises made by political parties seeks to bring "standardisation in the nature of information facilitating comparability", it said.

(With PTI inputs)

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