Battle for Delhi: 3 manifestos, 3 distinct styles, 1 objective
APPROACHES AAP vows abolition of house tax, Cong to limit exemption to elderly, BJP says won’t increase it
With the Aam Aadmi Party releasing its manifesto for the MCD elections, the stage is now set for a fierce battle on Sunday — the polling day. Looking back at the manifestos of the three major parties in the fray, it is clear that all – the AAP, the BJP and the Congress – are hinging on ‘house tax’ as their trump card.
As 26% to 30% of the revenue earned by the three civic bodies comes from property tax, the AAP has promised to finish the system altogether and waive off all dues.
The Congress said it would exempt senior citizens and those who have not rented out their properties, while the BJP plans not to increase the taxes.
The sop indicates it is the rich who the parties are trying to woo the most. While one-third of Delhi’s population lives in slums and illegal colonies, 69% houses are actually owned by Delhiites. For AAP, this is crucial as it feels confident about winning the onethird population — its key vote bank — and is trying to reach out to the house-owning voters. Naturally, after chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s announcement, the other two parties too jumped into the wagon.
One thing that is different about the AAP manifesto is that it has made it similar to its ‘Outcome budget’ by setting a deadline for many of its promises. It says it would make Delhi garbage free in one year and the city would be free of vector-borne diseases by 2020 among other things.
The Congress, like AAP, has promised to shut landfill sites. But the latter has set 2019 as the target while the former states how it will be done.
On the financial crisis plaguing the MCDs, Delhi state unit president Manoj Tiwari said, “The party will develop a mechanism for direct flow of funds from the Centre to the corporations.”
On the other hand, AAP convener Kejriwal said it would turn the MCDs into a profit making bodies in just a year’s time.
When asked how he aims to do it, he said, “Delhi government made a flyover of ₹3.25 crore near Pitampura in ₹2 crore and that too before time. MCD is making one Rani Jhansi flyover since 2006, they have crossed their budget and are still building it. The attitude needs to change.”
Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken promised to solve the issue by ensuring a tax of ₹1,600 crore annual from toll.
“Besides, we would control the parking mafia, push outdoor advertisement and effectively issue municipal bonds. Giving licences to street vendors will also generate ₹600 per year,” he said.
The parties have also approached the health sector differently. While the BJP manifesto talks of providing health cards, the AAP, like in Delhi government set-ups, has promised to make all tests and medicines free in MCD dispensaries and hospitals. The Congress preferred to focus on augmenting facilities already available in the city’s Primary Health Centres.
While the issues in the municipal elections remain the same, the three parties have ideated completely different approaches in dealing with the problems of sanitation, finances and civic infrastructure.