Congress MP Dr Dharamvira Gandhi on Friday stirred a controversy with back-to-back social media posts criticising the culture of “freebies” ahead of elections, triggering sharp reactions from political opponents and prompting his party to distance itself from the remarks.The controversy comes at a time when political temperatures are rising in view of next year’s Assembly elections, with welfare schemes and “freebies” emerging as a key point of contention among parties.Gandhi in one of his posts referred to beneficiaries of free electricity for irrigation and domestic use, as well as free bus travel, as “bhondu (naive)”, suggesting that in exchange for such benefits, people had “lost education, health, employment, childhood, youth and now even their old age.”In another post, the MP said a society “plagued by drugs and freebies” wags its tail “like an obedient dog” and can never celebrate self-esteem or self-pride, nor excel as a community.The remarks quickly drew criticism for being insensitive and for allegedly insulting the people of Punjab.While Gandhi’s party sought to distance itself from the comments, opponents, including the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), were quick to attack him. The ruling party called the comments “unfortunate” and demanded an apology from the MP for allegedly hurling a slur at the people of the state, including his own voters.When contacted, Gandhi stood by his statement, maintaining that the posts reflected his personal views and were not politically motivated. He alleged that the governments are promoting a “mai-baap” (feudal) culture, where citizens are treated as subjects rather than empowered stakeholders.“People who are dependent on free travel, free electricity and other handouts just before elections gradually lose their self-esteem and the ability to question the government and its policies. This deepens inequality in society,” Gandhi said, while also criticising the practice of direct transfer of funds before election.He adding that the focus should instead be on strengthening education, healthcare and skill development to ensure long-term prosperity of the state.
