Taking the war of freebies to a new high, the AIADMK manifesto for the coming Assembly elections has promised 20 kg a month of free rice to ration-card holders, laptops to class XI students, free fans, mineral water to BPL families, and mixers and grinders. Seeking to match DMK President M Karunanidhi, her bete noire, AIADMK chief J Jayalalithaa generously showered the manifesto with freebies. She filed her nomination today from the temple town of Srirangam, moving away from the rural constituency of Andipatti.
To woo women, Jayalalithaa promised four gms of gold for 'a Thali' (mangalsutra) to the poor, besides cable TV connections at subsidised rates. The promised freebies mark a U-turn from her opposition to such populist schemes announced by the DMK the in 2006 elections, which were perceived to have tilted the balance in its favour. The manifesto has not only tried to take a leaf from the DMK’s about several major schemes, but also sought to go beyond in some areas.