The Congress party released its election manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, 2024, and it has been named the ‘Nyay Patra’. Top party leaders like Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal, and P. Chidambaram were present during the release. The ‘Nyay Patra’ promises ‘Paanch Nyay’ and ‘Pachees Guarantee’, making them the broad theme of the party manifesto this time.
At the beginning of the programme, P. Chidambaram said that democracy has been diminished under the BJP’s rule in India; and the economic growth of India under Modi’s rule has been 5.8 percent, which is a big drop from the UPA times.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, speaking with the media, said that this election is between ‘those who are trying to destroy Constitution and democracy, and those trying to protect them.’
In its manifesto, the Congress party has, for the first time, promised the youth of the country, the ‘right to employment’. Apart from this, Congress will conduct nation-wide socio-economic caste census, and will also increase the 50 percent cap on reservations for the SC, ST, and OBC communities. The ‘Nyay Patra’ also promises to fill nearly 30 lakh vacancies in sanctioned posts at various levels in the central government.
10 percent quota in jobs and educational institutions has also been promised for the EWS, and the party has also said that it will reserve 50 percent of jobs for women, starting 2025. The manifesto further said that the Rajasthan Model of cashless insurance of up to 25 lakhs will be adopted for universal healthcare.
The party has promised to immediately restore full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir; and on the other hand, a promise of giving 1 lakh Rupees per year to every poor family has also been made. As a one-time measure of relief, the Congress party will also write off the amount due, including unpaid interest, as on March 15, 2024, in respect of all student education loans, and the banks will be compensated by the government.
The party also mentioned in its manifesto that a new law, to recognize civil unions between couples from the LGBTQIA+ community, will also be brought if it comes to power.
