The Indian Express (Delhi Edition)
Takeaways from Cong manifesto: Push for jobs, quotas; focus on youth, women, marginalised
Cong document pledges MSP law, 50% job quota for women & apprenticeship right for youth
FACING AN uphill battle in the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress Friday came out with its manifesto, titled “Nyay Patra” announcing a raft of promises to woo the marginalised, such as lifting the 50% cap on quota for SCS, STS and OBCS in addition to reservation in private educational institutions. The party has outlined steps to create jobs even as it has offered cash doles to women. Here are the key takeaways.
Social justice
The Congress, especially its senior leader Rahul Gandhi, has already made the demand for a nationwide caste census. The manifesto reiterates the promise but adds the party will pass a constitutional amendment to raise the 50% cap on reservation for the SCS, STS and OBCS, implement the 10% quota in jobs and education for the EWS for all castes and communities, fill up backlog vacancies in reserved posts within one year and double the funds for scholarships for the SC, ST and OBC students, especially for higher education.
The party promised to enact a law with reference to Article 15( 5) of the Constitution to provide for reservation in private educational institutions for the SCS, STS and OBCS, another law named after Rohith Vemula to address discrimination faced by students belonging to the oppressed and backward communities in educational institutions, and pledged to establish a Diversity Commission that will measure, monitor and promote diversity in public and private employment and education. It promised to appoint more women and persons belonging to the SC, ST, OBC and minority communities as judges of the HCS and the Supreme Court.
Unemployment
The party promises on job creation include enactment of a Right to Apprenticeship Act to provide a one year apprenticeship with a private or a public sector company to every diploma holder or college graduate under the age of 25 with a stipend of Rs 1 lakh a year. The party has pledged to set up fasttrack courts for cases related to question paper leaks.
Besides, the Congress has promised to fill the nearly 30 lakh vacancies in sanctioned posts in the central government, restructure the Fund of
Funds Scheme for start- ups and allocate 50% of the available fund among all districts, for providing funds to youth aged below 40 years to start. Among the party’s other key promises is to launch an urban employment programme guaranteeing work for the urban poor in reconstruction and renewal of infrastructure, increase wage under MGNREGA to Rs 40 0/ day and f ix the same amount as national minimum wage. The Congress has promised to introduce a new employment- linked incentive ( ELI) scheme for corporates.
Women
The manifesto promises to launch a scheme, called Mahalakshmi, to provide Rs 1 lakh per year to every poor Indian family as an unconditional cash transfer. It also promises to implement 33% reservation for women in Parliament and Assemblies immediately and reserve 50% of central government jobs for women beginning 2025.
Institutional overhaul
The Congress manifesto makes several promises including decriminalising the offence of defamation and provide, by law, a speedy remedy by way of civil damages and assurance to end the arbitrary and indiscriminate suspension of the Internet.
The party said it will review the Telecommunications Act, 2023 and remove the provisions that restrict freedom of speech and violate the right to privacy.
The Congress has also promised to ensure that police, investigation and intelligence agencies will function strictly in accordance with law. “They will be brought under the oversight of Parliament or the state legislatures, as the case may be... We promise to enact a law on bail that will incorporate the principle that ‘ bail is the rule, jail is the exception’ in all criminal laws,” the manifesto states.
Silences, tweaks
After pitching for the Old Pension Scheme ( OPS) for government employees, making it a part of its plank in Assembly polls, and actually reverting to it in states where it came to power, the manifesto steers clear of the OPS promise in its manifesto.
The Congress had also demanded a return to paper ballot. But the manifesto is silent on that count too. Instead, it says, “voting will be through EVM but the voter will be able to hold and deposit the machine- generated voting slip into the VVPAT unit. The electronic vote tally will be matched against the VVPAT slip tally.” The manifesto has promised removal of the Angel Tax and passage of a law to cap collection of cess as a percentage of tax revenues.
Other major promises
The Congress has promised to abolish the Agnipath scheme.
“We will immediately restore full statehood to J& K. We will amend the Sixth Schedule of the Constitution to include the tribal areas of Ladakh,” it says.
The party has pledged to expand Articles 15 and 16 to prohibit discrimination on grounds of “disability”, “impairment” or “sexual orientation”. The Congress said it will amend the Tenth Schedule of the Constitution and make defection an automatic disqualification of membership in the Assembly or Parliament. The party has promised to establish a National Judicial Commission in consultation with the SC and the CJS of HCS. The party has promised to establish a Judicial Complaints Commission consisting of retired judges of the SC and retired CJS of HCS to investigate complaints of misconduct against judges of higher judiciary. The Congress has also pledged to replace GST laws and put in place a new regime which will be based on universally accepted principle that GST shall be a single, moderate rate with a few exceptions. The party proposes to redesign the GST Council, making it the final authority on policy and all GST- related matters.