Ahead of the Assembly election in Madhya Pradesh, the Congress released its manifesto titled Vachan Patra (Promise Letter) here on Tuesday. An Indian Premier League (IPL) team for the State, ₹25-lakh health insurance cover and accident insurance up to ₹10 lakh for all families, a caste-based survey, 27% reservation to Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in government jobs, farm loan waiver up to ₹2 lakh and implementation of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) are among promises in the manifesto.
In the 106-page document, the Congress promised to purchase wheat from farmers at ₹2,600 per quintal, rice at ₹2,500 per quintal, and an allowance of ₹1,500-₹3,000 to unemployed youth. Launching the manifesto, Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) president Kamal Nath also announced the Nandini Gau-Dhan Yojana under which cow dung will be purchased at ₹2 per kg.
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Elections to M.P.’s 230 Assembly seats will be held on November 17. and the votes will be counted on December 3. The two main parties, the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), have promised a slew of welfare schemes, several of them focused on women.
Reiterating its earlier promise of ₹1,500 allowance for women and LPG cylinder for ₹500 under Nari Samman Yojana, the Congress in its manifesto also promised free bus rides for women in metros, on the lines of its promise in Karnataka where it won a thumping majority in May.
Mr. Nath said that the party received more than 9,000 suggestions from across the State for its manifesto.
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“Several people used to give me their suggestions every day in person or through email and WhatsApp. I even received several postcards. Many people also handed me their suggestions and demands in chits placed inside a match box when I visited their areas,” he said.
Mr. Nath said that the party’s Vachan Patra consists of 1,290 promises, including 101 main guarantees, under 59 subjects. The Congress leader said that M.P. should also have its IPL team and that the Congress will work to make it happen.
He said that the Congress has made seven separate single-page manifestos for seven sections such as women, youth, farmers, workers, families, belief, and social justice.
The Congress has made caste-based survey its main plank in the M.P. elections after the Bihar government earlier this month released its survey, revealing that the OBCs and Extremely Backward Classes (EBCs) formed over 63% of the State’s population. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has also promised to hold a nationwide caste census if the Congress forms a government after the 2024 Lok Sabha election.
It is also the first time that the Congress has promised 27% reservation to OBCs in a manifesto for a State election. Last December, the Chhattisgarh Assembly unanimously passed two amendment Bills -- related to reservation in government jobs and admission in educational institutions -- brought by the Bhupesh Baghel-led Congress government, according to which OBCs will get 27% reservation. The two Bills -- that take total reservation in the State to 76% -- are awaiting the Governor’s assent.
The promises already announced by the Congress are also part of the manifesto. These include free school education till Class 12, ₹500-₹1,500 scholarship allowance for school students, free 100 units of electricity, and reimplementing the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act in tribal areas.
Mr. Nath also launched the party’s official slogan for the elections — ‘Congress Aayegi, Khushhaali Laayegi’ (The Congress will come and bring happiness).
When asked about how the Congress will manage the State’s finances with so many welfare schemes, Dr. Rajendra Kumar Singh, head of the manifesto committee, said that the party will “fine tune or do away” with many of the current BJP’s schemes.
“We will shed the excess baggage. There are so many schemes that this government has launched only to get bribes and have no real benefits to the public. We will evaluate them. If they require modification or fixing, we will do that, otherwise we will do away with them. Even their Ladli Behna Scheme [women’s welfare aid of ₹1,000 per month] is half-baked,” Mr. Singh said.
Commenting on the Congress manifesto, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan termed it a “manifesto of lies”.
“Even five years ago, they made 9,000 promises to the public but did not fulfil even nine of them. They have again presented a manifesto of lies but the public will not believe it,” Mr. Chouhan said.
