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Lok Sabha Elections 2024: As preparations for the Lok Sabha elections are starting in the country, speeches by leaders on various issues are also starting. Some time ago, when the election manifesto of Congress came, it talked about redistribution of wealth. There is talk of giving half of the wealth owned by the rich to those who do not have it. Theoretically, such measures are taken to eliminate economic inequality. In such a process the rich are often taxed more. In addition, land ownership, land distribution and other issues are also considered. Public welfare schemes are being implemented. Overall, an attempt is being made to take money from the rich and give it to the poor.
What is in the election manifesto of Congress?
It is noteworthy that in the manifesto of Congress, it has been talked about implementing positive action in a proper manner to remove the economic inequality of the society. Due to this, Congress has also talked about conducting social, economic and caste census in the country. The thing is that neither the Congress nor any of its leaders has spoken clearly about wealth redistribution, but the issue has been debated. After the survey, Rahul Gandhi talked about deciding that everyone should get a share in India's wealth, jobs and welfare schemes. Now the issue has shifted to the political level and has become one of redistribution of wealth. Amidst these allegations and counter-allegations, politics is actually about knowing what and when the property is distributed.
Economic and social inequality is the main reason for this
The question of wealth redistribution comes up in the society only when there is a lot of economic inequality in the society. According to experts, such a situation has arisen at present. A study by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development showed that the richest 10 percent of people in 38 countries of the world own 52 percent of the wealth. On the other hand, the less rich own only 12 percent of the wealth. That is why there is talk of redistribution of wealth to reduce economic inequality. In general, informants believe that doing it this way allows for a more equitable distribution of wealth. In such cases, the super rich are charged more taxes. People who earn more pay more taxes. From these earnings, welfare schemes are made and subsidy amount is given. Many times schemes like depositing money directly into the account are also implemented. Thus there is no concrete plan or formula for wealth redistribution. Governments also imposed taxes on wealth. As far as India is concerned, earlier wealth tax was implemented like inheritance tax. In addition, wealth tax and gift tax were also implemented. This structure was repealed from time to time by new governments and all taxes were discontinued. Governments believed that the cost of running these infrastructures was greater than the revenue generated from taxes. Therefore this structure was not suitable.
India needs redistribution of wealth
According to economic experts, there seems to be a need for redistribution of wealth in the country. Economic inequality has increased to a great extent in India. The difference in economic inequality among them is very high. According to a recent study, the richest 1 percent of India's people own 40 percent of the wealth. This difference is very big. Big steps will have to be taken to control this. For this, super rich tax will have to be imposed on billionaires and rich people. A study released some time ago said that only 6.6 percent of the country's population filed IT returns in 2020-21. Of these, only 0.68 percent paid tax. The country's richest 0.16 percent declared only 38.6 percent of taxable income. It simply means, higher the income higher savings. The wealth is snatched from this 0.16 percent people and distributed among the remaining 90 percent people. 30 crore people in the country are registered on the e-Shram portal. Of these, 90 percent are people whose monthly income is less than Rs 10,000. This shows that 1 percent of the people have half the income while 90 percent of the people have nothing. Redistributive options should be considered to address this inequality.
Can the government take the money of the rich and distribute it among the poor?
It is generally believed that the government has the right to redistribute private property, especially that of the rich. Article 39(b) of the Constitution defines the right of the government to take possession of material resources for the benefit of the common people and to distribute them among the needy. However, different views have come forward on this issue several times in the Supreme Court itself. There are examples of the government doing this and in many cases the Supreme Court has also banned such operations. The above article comes under the Directive Principles of State Policy in the Constitution. On the basis of this, the state gets the right to acquire material resources and distribute them among the people for the betterment of the community. Importantly, the Directive Principles of State Policy are intended to provide guidance to the government in making laws. There is also an argument that this does not prove anything concrete.
The rate of economic inequality is high in many countries of the world
Talking about India, economic inequality is also very high here. Economic inequality is high in India, especially compared to Germany and Britain. According to a survey conducted by The World Inequality Lab, 10 percent of the people in India own 64.6 percent of the wealth. In Germany and Britain this figure is 57.6 percent and 57 percent respectively. If we look at the average, then there are many countries in the world where there is more inequality than India, but there are also examples that the economy of these countries is already running like this. Inequality has gradually increased in India. South Africa has the highest economic inequality. In South Africa, the richest 10 percent of the country own 85.6 percent of the wealth. While the remaining 14.4 percent wealth is distributed across the country. Similarly, in Brazil the richest 10 percent own 79.9 percent of the wealth. This figure is higher in America also. The richest 10 percent of people in America own 70.7 percent of the wealth.
The concept of this article was not accepted in a 1977 case
Since 1977, the Supreme Court has attempted to define Article 39(B) in several cases on this issue. His direct views on some issues were not accepted. In 1977, the concept of this article was adopted differently in the case of State of Karnataka v. Sri Ranganatha Reddy. A bench of 7 judges sat to hear the case. The decision came with an average of 4:3. The majority decision held that the benefit of the general community cannot be conferred on private material resources by this Article. The concept that privately owned resources cannot come under public benefit is wrong, Justice Krishna Iyer said at the time. Private property should be considered public property. His argument was that the individual is a part of society. Therefore, a person's personal property should also be considered a part of the society. Therefore he argued for accepting and implementing the definition of this article. Surprisingly, the judgment was different at the time but with time Justice Krishna Iyer's reasoning became more consistent.