Mumbai, September 12, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has criticised what it described as a growing global trend of election-time handouts, comparing US President Donald Trump’s proposed “Trump Dividend” with welfare schemes announced by political parties in India.
In an editorial published in the party mouthpiece Saamana on Saturday, the Uddhav Thackeray-led party alleged that the “freebie culture” associated with political campaigns in both the US and India was weakening democratic values and undermining public accountability.
The editorial compared Trump’s proposal to deposit $5,000 into the bank accounts of American adults if Republicans secure control of both houses of Congress with welfare initiatives such as Maharashtra’s “Ladki Bahin” scheme and similar programmes in other Indian states.
“What Modi and Shah are doing in India, Trump is replicating in the United States,” the editorial claimed, alleging that public funds were being used to distribute handouts and gain electoral support.
The party argued that implementing the proposed US payout could place a burden of more than $1 trillion on the US Treasury, while pointing to the country’s national debt and fiscal deficit. It also claimed that the proposal had raised concerns within Trump’s own Republican Party over its financial implications and implementation.
The editorial said congressional approval would be required for the scheme and cited Vice President J.D. Vance’s comments about scrutiny and legal procedures, including ensuring that wealthy Americans would not benefit.
Drawing a parallel with India, the Shiv Sena (UBT) editorial referred to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 2014 promise of depositing Rs 15 lakh in every Indian’s bank account, alleging that the pledge had not been fulfilled. It also criticised welfare announcements by state governments, claiming that such schemes were increasingly being used as electoral instruments.
The party argued that unemployment, inflation and agrarian distress continued to be major concerns in India, while claiming that the US administration was also struggling to address domestic challenges.
The editorial concluded that reliance on public-funded handouts for electoral gains was becoming a global phenomenon and alleged that such politics weakened democratic principles and reduced government accountability.
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