Congress chief Rahul Gandhi released poll promise with Sonia Gandhi and Manmohan Singh.
The Congress manifesto announced today kept the focus sharply on the bread and butter issues for the people - jobs, minimum income, education, farming - all far from the muscular nationalism and national security the BJP is discussing since the terror attack on Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama. Rahul Gandhi, who made the announcement before the media, said his party has ensured whatever was promised in the manifesto - the result of a year-long initiative -- was do-able and true. "I made it clear that nothing in this can be a lie, because we live in a time where we hear a large number of lies every day," Rahul Gandhi told the media. With a tagline of "Congress will deliver", the manifesto promised work on multiple fronts.
NYAY scheme: The party's big-ticket scheme to launch what they called "surgical strike on poverty" involves payment of Rs 72,000 a year. "The truth is, we cannot promise people 15 lakh in everyone's bank accounts," Rahul Gandhi said, taking a dig at PM Modi's pre-2014 election announcement on flushing out black money from banks and paying it to people. The scheme, he also said, would be a handle to kickstart the sluggish economy. "When people have money in their hands, they will buy stuff and that's what will boost the economy again,' he said.
More employment: Around 22 lakh jobs in government offices are vacant, Rahul Gandhi said. If the Congress is voted to power, these positions will be filled by March 2020. Another 10 lakh jobs can be provided at village panchayat levels, said the Congress chief who has vehemently criticised the Narendra Modi government for failing to address the huge issue of unemployment the young people of the country are facing.
New GST: Rahul Gandhi said the Congress would "remove the Gabbar Singh Tax and make it into GST that should have been". Repeating the party's contention that the various slabs in the government's flagship Goods and Services Tax defeats the "one country one tax" purpose, he said, "We will remove five GST slabs and bring one slab at a low tax rate. The way it should have been in the first place".
Farm loans: Defaulting on farm loans will no longer be a criminal offence if the Congress comes to power. "We see that the rich and industrialists get away with bank loan defaults, but the farmers go to jail," Mr Gandhi said.
Education and free healthcare: The Congress has promised to double the outlay on education to 6 per cent of the GDP. It has also promised to make free healthcare available for all.
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