Populist Politics and Policies: Welfare Populism in India

In the last few years, Indian politics has entered in a new phase of populist politics, where state welfarism promotes the policiesPopulist politics, policies with a strategic sense of belonging to a particular ideology. The populist persuasion of Hindutva ideology and beneficiaries (labharthi) creates the ground of adaptability beyond identity. There have been various policies introduced and implemented all across the nation. Political parties and their leaders have condemned and criticized the opposition’s promises. Undoubtedly, Indian democracy is facing new challenges in the form of populism and populist persuasion by the leaders. India is known for the welfare state to institutionalize the discourse of social justice and empowerment of weaker sections of society. However, these schemes are not a new initiative in the way of inclusive development and welfare populism. The history of welfare populism is constant from leftist Indira Gandhi to the rightist Modi. However, the origin of populist welfarism can be traced back to the late 1960s and the early 1970s. Contemporary right-wing populism favors faith, spirituality, and modern technology altogether. But these populist measures are unsustainable without policies and programs. Strategic welfarism is one of the aspects of Modi’s populism. Since 2014, the BJP has continued to leverage its “new welfarism.” It focuses on tangible services such as cash transfers, cooking gas, electricity, shelter, water, etc., directly related to welfare populism. Why can’t populists talk about employment, health, and education that could serve in the long run but prefer to deliver freebies? Thus, it is indispensable to identify how and why these policies emerged as populist political projects.