Chandigarh, April 29 -- Chairman of the sixteenth Finance Commission Arvind Panagariya on Monday said that the competitive populism displayed by states doling out freebies is a cause of concern for the Commission, but it is struggling to address the question as to what would qualify as a freebie.

"Yes, it's a concern for the Commission in terms with how the freebies or subsidies impacted the financial stability and macro-economic stability. I will not answer what the Commission should or should not do because until those decisions are made it will be inappropriate for me to express an opinion," Panagariya said while responding to a query on fiscal responsibility.

Asked whether fiscal management by states can be considered to become a cr...