Doles for Patidars in Cong manifesto
AHMEDABAD: The Congress promised reservation in jobs and education to Patidars in the party’s Gujarat poll manifesto on Monday, besides pledging incentives such as houses for women, loan waiver to farmers, stipend to jobless young people, and cut in fuel prices.
But the party didn’t specify the percentage at which reservation would be provided to the Patidar community whose vote could be a deciding factor this election.
“Without affecting, reducing or making any change in the present 49% reservation of the backward communities, Congress party will introduce a bill in the assembly at the earliest,” says the manifesto, which pledges a quota to all unreserved classes.
The party has been trying to woo the Patidars who can influence results in more than 60 of 182 assembly constituencies.
The Patidars, known to be traditional BJP supporters, are seeking reservation benefits entitled to other backward class (OBC) communities in government jobs and college admissions.
The state’s BJP government had offered 10% reservation to the community, bringing an ordi- nance. But the Supreme Court struck down the ordinance as the new quota breached the aggregate 50% reservation ceiling allowed in a state for various communities.
Gujarat was on the edge in August 2015 as Patidars, led by a young and fiery Hardik Patel, held a huge rally in Ahmedabad demanding reservation.
The event triggered widespread violence in which 10 people were killed and public property worth crores of rupees was damaged across the state.
Patel’s Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti has declared its support to the Congress after accepting the party’s reservation formula before the state polls.
“We will consult all stakehold- ers on reservation to Patidars and a commission will be constituted for this purpose,” state Congress chief Bharatsinh Solanki said.
The BJP, which has yet to announce its manifesto, was quick to respond to its rival’s promises.
It said the Congress “cheated” the Patidars by not mentioning the reservation percentage.
“The manifesto is otherwise full of baseless promises,” BJP spokesperson Bharat Pandya said.
Gujarat, where the Congress is out of power for 22 years, goes to the polls on December 9 and 14. Results will be declared on December 18.
The party, if voted to power, pledged an unemployment allow- ance of up to ~4,000 a month for each jobless youth in the state. The Congress has been alleging rising unemployment and shrinking job opportunities in Bjp-ruled Gujarat and the country in general.
The party pledges social sector benefits for OBCS and weaker sections of society.
The Congress is trying win over the OBCS, who comprise 146 castes and make up around 40% of the state’s about 60-million people.
Alpesh Thakore, a Dalit leader, joined the party before the elections.
In another promise, apparently directed towards traders, transporters and the middle class, the Congress said it would reduce the price of petrol and diesel by up to ~10 in the state. Besides, the party vows to regulate cooking gas prices to make the commodity affordable.
The manifesto promises a “Sardar Patel Universal Health Card” to provide subsidised healthcare, minimum support price for the state’s main crops, cotton and groundnut, assured electricity for 16 hours a day and up to 200 units of power for ~2 a unit. Solanki said: “The aim is to take care of Gujarat’s happiness index.”