Former Maharashtra chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, who was made chairman of the committee for Madhya Pradesh to ensure better coordination among leaders and implementation of the party manifesto, has a tightrope walk ahead in connection with its farm loan waiver promise.
The party rode to power after a 15-year hiatus in MP on the back of a manifesto promise to waive off farm loans, but the fact that it would need Rs 50,000 crore at a time when the state is facing financial constraints has made the Kamal Nath government in the state open to allegations from the BJP about breaking poll promises.
Incidentally, then Congress chief Rahul Gandhi had told people in Assembly poll rallies in the state that he would replace his party chief minister if the loan waiver scheme was not implemented in 10 days.
A leader close to Chavan said the latter was a performer in the PMO during the UPA dispensation and also as Maharashtra chief minister between 2010 and 2014, and is an able hand when it came to implementing government schemes, prime among them being the massive Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA).
But he added that financial constraints might play spoilsport in Chavan's attempt to ensure the party's manifesto in Madhya Pradesh is implemented to the fullest.
Even Kamal Nath, after taking over as chief minister in December, 2018, had said the state was staring at empty coffers and had, at the time, attacked the BJP which ruled the state for 15 years.
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While MP has written off loans worth Rs 7,000 crore of 21 lakh farmers in the first phase of the waiver scheme as per state government officials, a Congress leader pointed out that most of the loans were of Rs 50,000 and less.
The party in its manifesto had promised to waive off loans to the tune of Rs 2 lakh.
According to a government estimate, some 38 lakh more farmers are eligible for loan waiver.
MP Congress spokesperson Bhupendra Gupta on Tuesday claimed his party had fulfilled 365 promises mentioned in the manifesto and exuded confidence the Kamal Nath government will waive off loans of every farmer.
Incidentally, the Congress manifesto in the run-up to the polls in late 2018 had over 900 promises.
Gupta blamed the NDA government at the Centre for not giving due assistance to the state.
"Instead of giving Rs 8000 crore central assistance to MP to tide over the damage caused here due to excess rainfall in the 2019 monsoon, the NDA government has allotted only Rs 1000 crore," Gupta claimed.
Hitting back, BJP state chief spokesperson Deepak Vijayvargiya said the Congress had cheated the state's people and claimed not a single promise mentioned in the manifesto had been fulfilled.
"Even after a year in power, the Kamal Nath government has not fulfilled its promise of farm loan waiver. It came to power by virtue of this promise," Vijayvargiya said.
He also rubbished allegations that the Narendra Modi government was discriminating against MP.