Congress accuses Rajasthan BJP of bribing voters with free smartphone scheme

The Congress on Wednesday accused the BJP government in Rajasthan of using state money to bribe voters through a scheme offering free smartphones. Party spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi also charged the BJP with insulting the memory of Maharana Pratap and his aide Bhamashah by naming the scheme after them.

The scheme

The Vasundhara Raje government has announced free smartphones with internet access under the Bhamashah Digital Parivar Yojana for families covered by the National Food Security Act (NFSA). Government records show 1.64 crore families, with 6.08 crore members, are enrolled under the Bhamashah scheme, and 1.03 crore of these families qualify for NFSA benefits.

Singhvi’s allegations

Singhvi said that, with the Model Code of Conduct only weeks away, the state government was spending public funds to win over voters at a time when, he claimed, people were rejecting the chief minister. Election promises were legitimate, he said, but handing out benefits from the treasury amounted to an offence. He described the phones as an “electoral lollipop” paid for by taxpayers.

He said the Representation of the People Act, 1951 defines bribery clearly, and called the distribution “collective bribery” on a vast scale. He also alleged that the BJP had spent Rs 1 crore of public money on the chief minister’s Gaurav Yatra in the Udaipur division alone between August 4 and 10. Singhvi asked why the government had acted only after 56 months, just before the polls, and accused the Modi government and BJP-ruled states of offering freebies at the end of their terms.

On Bhamashah, who managed Mewar’s treasury, Singhvi said the BJP was harming the state’s finances and his legacy. Asked whether the party would approach the Election Commission, he said the Congress had several options and that its main aim was to make the public aware. The BJP’s response was not included in the report.

What happened next

In the Rajasthan Assembly election held on 7 December 2018, the Congress emerged as the largest party with 99 of the 199 seats that voted, against 73 for the BJP, and Ashok Gehlot became Chief Minister.

See also: Indian National Congress and Elections.

Originally published on 6 September 2018. Rewritten on 9 October 2026.

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