The recent announcement of the extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) free ration scheme for another five years has come as a respite for a large section of the poor population in the country. The extension of the scheme is expected to benefit around 80 crore people. The need to distribute something as basic as food grain to such a large population is indicative of the vulnerability of the millions of poor residing in the country. The Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana, initiated in 2020 amid the Covid-19 pandemic, aimed to provide 5 kg of free food grains to eligible ration card holders under the National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA). Later, in 2022, ahead of the Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh Assembly elections, the PMGKAY's duration was extended until December 2022. As the deadline approached, it was merged with the NFSA and further extended for an additional year until the coming December. Now, in the wake of assembly elections and the upcoming General Election, the government has made the recent extension. Opposition parties and political observers have rightly questioned the timing of the announcement and the intent behind it. The Indian Prime Minister and BJP stalwart Narendra Modi announced the extension at an election rally in Durg, Chhattisgarh. The PM highlighted, “Even today, lakhs of poor people have been getting free rice and gram under this scheme, which is ending in December, but your son (the Prime Minister) who has come out from among you has decided.... The government will extend the free ration scheme for 80 crore poor people for the next five years." Undeniably, this is a clear violation of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC). The Model Code of Conduct is a set of guidelines and rules that govern the behaviour and actions of political parties and candidates during election periods. Among other things, the code regulates issues like the use of government resources, advertisements, and the timing of political rallies and speeches. Apparently, there didn’t seem to be any urgency to announce the extension at this juncture when the election process was underway. Even if the extension of the PMGKY was a policy imperative, the BJP leadership could have shown greater political wisdom in waiting until the end of the elections. Highlighting the same, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh remarked, "A desperate Prime Minister announced a five-year extension of the PM Garib Kalyan Yojana in the midst of the Chhattisgarh election campaign. This is a blatant violation of the Model Code of Conduct.” Opposition leaders have also urged the Election Commission of India to take note of the situation and intervene accordingly. Apart from this constitutional dilemma, the extension of the scheme is also being questioned for its feasibility. It must be noted that the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance, in June 2022, had stated that it is not advisable to continue the PMGKAY beyond its extension till September 2022 on “grounds of food security and fiscal grounds.” It also said that the extension is “far beyond the need of non-pandemic times.” However, the fiscal feasibility of the scheme remains a debatable issue. While a segment believes that the government is plagued with serious fiscal constraints, which can be further worsened by the extension of the PMGKAY, others believe that the extension may not cause serious problems on the fiscal front, as the food subsidy bill is about 7.5 per cent of the revenue receipts of the Union government. It will be critically important to know how the government approaches its FY24 fiscal deficit target of 5.9 per cent of GDP. In sum total, apart from the stated intent of aiding the nutrition needs of vulnerable sections of society, the Central government’s decision to extend the PMGKAY at this juncture signifies a political intent. In doing so, the government may have created a precarious situation for the fiscal stability of the economy. Additionally, it appears contradictory to the provisions of the Model Code of Conduct. Furthermore, the line between welfarism and populism has been significantly blurred.