 "Will do a caste census and scrap Agnipath scheme: Congress in manifesto")
With the Lok Sabha elections set to commence in seven phases from April 19 to June 1, the Congress party has announced its manifesto promising policies for economic stability and social justice.
Here are some of the highlights from the Congress party's election manifesto:
Economic stability and policy
Income Tax rates: The Congress party pledged to maintain stable personal Income Tax rates throughout its term, wooing the salaried class to plan their finances over the medium-to-long term.
Minimum Support Prices guarantee: Congress guarantees a legal guarantee to Minimum Support Prices (MSP) recommended by the M S Swaminathan Commission.
Ending ‘cess raj’: The Congress says it will end the 'cess regime’ of the current government and introduce a law to limit Union cess and surcharges to five per cent of gross tax revenues.
Devolution of central tax revenues: The party will instruct the Finance Commission to consider factors such as demographic performance and tax efforts in determining the share of states in central tax revenues.
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Environmental concerns
Strengthening Clean Air Programme: The Congress party commits to strengthening the National Clean Air Programme to urgently tackle air pollution.
Social justice and empowerment
Conducting Caste Census: Congress promises to conduct a nationwide socio economic and caste census, aiming to strengthen affirmative action based on the data.
Scrapping Agnipath scheme: Congress vows to return to normal recruitment processes in the Army, Navy, and Air Force, ensuring economic and social security for soldiers.
Reservation policy: The party guarantees to pass a constitutional amendment to raise the 50 per cent cap on reservations for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes.
Protecting personal freedoms: Congress promises not to interfere with personal choices related to food, dress, love, marriage, travel, and residence. Laws that unreasonably interfere with personal freedoms will be repealed.
Employment
Filling up vacancies: Congress pledges to fill all backlog vacancies in posts reserved for SC, ST, and OBC within one year.
Regularisation of jobs: The party commits to abolishing 'contractualisation of regular jobs' in the government and public sector enterprises and ensuring the regularisation of such appointments.
Women empowerment
Reservation in jobs: Congress proposes to reserve 50 per cent of central government jobs for women starting in 2025.
Enforcing ‘Same Work, Same Wages’: The party ensures the enforcement of the principle of 'Same Work, Same Wages' to prevent wage discrimination against women.
Educational reforms
Establishing residential schools: Congress aims to establish a network of residential schools for underprivileged students, especially those from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, extending them to every block.
Promoting reading and discussion: The party plans to establish Ambedkar Bhavans-cum-Libraries in every district to promote the habit of reading and discussion.
Election process reforms
Restoring voter trust: The party pledges to restore voters' trust in the election process by amending election laws to combine the efficiency of electronic voting machines with the transparency of ballot papers.
Foreign policy
The party emphasises that engagement with Pakistan depends fundamentally on the neighbouring country’s willingness and ability to end cross-border terrorism.