The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: A Supreme Court bench has said that freebies announced by political parties were creating “a class of parasites” and disincentivising people from working by giving free ration and money.
“Rather than promoting them to be part of the mainstream society by contributing to the development of the nation, are we not creating a class of parasite,” said a bench of Justice B.R. Gavai and A.G. Masih, while hearing a petition by E.R. Kumar regarding shelter homes for the homeless.
The petitioner, as well as advocate Prashant Bhushan argued that policies were only designed for the rich, not for the poor. They pointed out that the Union government had stopped funding the urban shelter scheme in the last few years, as a result of which states and union territories are saying they do not have funds and cannot provide shelter. This was translating into the homeless languishing on roads.
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Stressing on the gravity of the situation, they pointed out that over 750 homeless persons have died this winter due to the cold.
“Main victims are the have-nots, the poor people, the homeless. Unfortunately, the cause of homelessness is not addressed. That’s the least priority in this country. Compassion, I am sorry to say, is only for the rich and not for the poor,” Kumar said.
However, Justice Gavai took exception to the submission and urged them not to make “political speeches” in the court.
“Don’t make a speech (like) at Ramlila Maidan in this court. In court, restrict yourself to the argument. If you are espousing the cause of someone, restrict it (to that). Don’t make unnecessary allegations. Don’t make a political speech here. We will not allow our court hall to be converted into a political platform,” he said.
Advocate Bhushan sought to explain that the petitioner was raising the issue with the removal of shelters for the beautification of the area. He added that the Delhi government informed the court that the shelters were in a dilapidated state.
To this, Justice Gavai said, “Unfortunately, because of these freebies, which (are announced) just on the anvil of elections. Some Ladki Bahin, some other schemes, the people are not willing to work. They are getting a free ration; they are getting an amount without doing any work. Why should they? Would it not be better to make them part of mainstream society? Permit them to contribute to the development of the nation.”
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Bhushan tried to intervene to say that if they have a job, they will be part of the mainstream society. He said that the problem is that those seeking shelter are usually involved in menial jobs and cannot afford a shelter to spend the night.
“There is hardly anybody in this country who would not want to work if there is some work,” he said, adding that the reason people come to cities is because they have no work in their villages.
Justice Gavai dismissed this calling it “one-sided knowledge” and went on to tell his personal experience. “I come from an agricultural family. Because of the freebies in Maharashtra, which were announced prior to the elections, the agriculturalists are not getting labourers. Everybody is getting free (ration) at home,” he said.
This is not the first time Justice Gavai has raised the freebies debate in court. On January 7, while hearing a matter on the payment of salaries and pensions of judicial officers, he said, “The states have all the money for people who don’t do any work… Come elections you declare Ladli Behna and other new schemes where you pay fixed amounts. In Delhi, we have announcements now from some party or the other saying they will pay Rs 2,500 if they come to power.”
The Supreme Court is also seized of petitions regarding the issue of freebies culture. In 2022, the top court had directed the listing of pleas regarding the practice of political parties promising freebies before a three-judge bench. This was in response to a public interest litigation or PIL filed by Bharatiya Janata Party Delhi spokesperson Ashwini Upadhyay, who also sought directions to the Election Commission to not permit political parties to promise freebies during election campaigns.
Meanwhile, the bench has asked Attorney General R Venkataramani, representing the Union government, to verify all the data presented by the petitioners regarding shelters. The AG said that the government was in the process of finalising the new mission on urban poverty alleviation, in which a wide range of issues related to poverty, including the provision of shelters will be addressed.