As voting is underway to elect a new government in the world’s largest democracy, inevitably the political atmosphere of India is charged up with political parties competing for power and have come out with their own sets of promises encapsulated in what is referred to as in popular parlance ‘’manifesto’’. As it is a general election that elects a federal government, despite being a multi party parliamentary democracy, India typically witnesses two dominant national parties vying for the seat in New Delhi, i.e. the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Indian National Congress (INC). The respective coalitions led by these two parties in the elections of 2024 are known as the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) – a political ‘’big tent’’ of the regional forces, the Communists and the splinter groups of erstwhile prominent parties coalesced respectively with a hope of unseating the ruling NDA led by the incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Manifesto Outlines
While it is quite obvious for a matured democracy like India to witness fierce competition for electoral space, it is also natural that the electoral season would generate considerable political fervor, debates and discussions centred around the merits (or demerits) of various political parties, their leaders and about the core issues that are likely to shape their electoral choices. Parties also find it expedient to engage with the voters through canvassing, campaigning, organising meetings and rallies, utlising the digital space to reach out the youths and first time voters amid myriad other ways. However, a manifesto is a critical element of electioneering for any party that seeks popular mandate based on the promises it makes to its voters. A manifesto outlines the vision of the party, its fundamental objectives and gives a hint of the policy path likely to be pursued by it if elected to power. It is also indicative in a subtle sense about its ideological inclinations.
Congress manifesto is ‘anti-national’
It is one of the issues that finds its place in the manifesto of the Congress (the oldest political entity of India and currently the main opposition party) that has created a political furore and evoked sharp reactions from the BJP, a section of the media, intelligentsia as well as the common citizens of the country. The party talks about conducting a ‘’socio-economic census’’ if voted to power. The census, the party states, would help identifying the absolute number of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes and the minorities and determine their share in the population as a percent of total population of the country. This census would ‘’strengthen the agenda of affirmative action’’ and would help make suitable policy measures to enable the socially disadvantaged groups including the minorities to have a just and equitable share in the country’s resources especially in sectors like education, healthcare, public employment and skill development and entrepreneurship.
Congress & ’Inheritence Tax’
Congress leader and MP Rahul Gandhi has been repeatedly saying in public rallies that the purported socio economic census would be followed by a comprehensive wealth redistribution plan wherein the alleged wealth accumulated by the corporate and big businesses would be redistributed equitably amongst the poor and marginalised. While this sounds revolutionary and ambitious on the face of it; it is contentious in its substance for several reasons. First, the entire idea of a caste census followed by a wealth redistribution policy sounds like a typical Marxist proclamation – with the ideological underpinnings rooted in Classical Marxist thoughts and philosophies. The Congress party that has considerably jettisoned its distinct ‘’centrist’’ position and has veered more towards the left and ultra left in recent years – particularly during the UPA era and more visibly after its debacle in 2014,the party has been filled with Communist sympathisers in its rank and file who are serving as advisors to Rahul Gandhi and undoubtedly must have had a role in this regard. Second, adding to fuel to the fire was Overseas Congress President and one of the Gandhi family loyalist Sam Pitroda’s statement that an ‘’Inheritence Tax’’ on the lines of US must be implemented in India.
India’s economic under congress Govt
An inheritance tax or an estate tax, is a tax levied on the total value of money and property of a deceased person before it is distributed to their legal heirs. In India currently, there is no inheritance tax. Ironically, it was Rajiv Gandhi who had abolished the estate duty in India in 1985 during his tenure as the PM. It has sparked apprehensions among the voters that they might be deprived of their legitimate share of parental property and in a country like India it has not just economic value but huge cultural and filial significance and a symbol of affection and love. Third, the proposed ‘’X-Ray’’ has raised fears that whether even the personal property and assets acquired as a result of years of hard work would be confiscated by the party if it comes to power. The tension and paranoia are well founded given the ‘more left than the Left’ proclivities of the Congress party.
Certainly, there is no denying of the fact that income inequalities and economic disparities have widened in India, like any other developing country. But structural impediments warrant more pragmatic, sustainable and nuanced responses to ameliorate socio economic inequalities; not knee jerk, adhoc and bellicose reactions. Social justice and economic betterment are the bedrocks of a welfare state and the Indian state has arguably performed well in remedying grave socio economic maladies through proactive and targeted policy interventions, irrespective of the regime in power.
Modi Government and social welfare
The decade long rule of Narendra Modi led BJP government in New Delhi is a case study of transformative governance and social welfarism. From opening bank accounts facilitating financial inclusion to Direct Benefit Transfers (DBTs) preventing corruption and leakages, constructing millions of toilets, housing for poor, providing gas connections, ensuring universal health insurance for poor families through Ayushman Bharat scheme to providing ration of free of cost ensuring food security – Modi regime has scripted history in lifting 250 million people out of extreme poverty between 2013-14 to 2022-23 as per the latest report of NITI Aayog’ s Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI). All these tasks were accomplished before compromising on the general economic well being and without reducing the economic efficiency, productivity and ease of living of its hard working citizens.
Congress party has gone astray in its zeal for regaining power and wants to compromise on the economic fundamentals of India. Paradoxically, it risks undoing its own legacy of initiating LPG reforms and heralding the era of globalisation and economic liberalisation – dismantling the behemoth of a socialist rentier state plagued by inefficiency, incompetence and corruption. It was Congress party led by the then PM PV Narasimha Rao and Finance Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh who charioted these reforms and gave the ‘’middle class’’ economic aspiration a face. By launching shriller, scathing attacks on the industrialists who are ‘wealth creators’ and contribute significantly to our economic progress and portraying them as ‘’crony capitalists’’ casts aspersions on the intentions of the Congress party and its proverbial prince to be crowned Rahul Gandhi. It would desist private investments in the country that has significant ramifications on the economic landscape of our nation.
Also, the very idea of a caste census and a socio economic survey is a fraught topic as it would deepen the existing faultlines in the country by arousing discontent among the unreserved category already bearing the brunt of caste based reservations in education to employment. It would alienate them further from the Congress party whose political fortunes are diminishing and show no signs of revival atleast for the forseeable future. Also the elites among the upper classes who had for long extended their political support to the grand old party overtly for its supposedly liberal, secular pretensions would now feel suffocated. Depriving meritorious candidates of their rightful share in socio economic avenues would aggravate the problem of ‘’brain drain’’ resulting in a demographic disaster for the country. By recklessly borrowing the caste based identity politics of ‘’social justice’’ from parties like SP, RJD, BSP and DMK, Congress is ready to forfeit its grand, nationalistic, secular, inclusive appeal undermining parochial and sectarian identities among the electorate – quite unbecoming for a party with a historical legacy of participating in India’s freedom struggle.
Caste census and Congress
Moreover, these ideas sound quite obsolete and redundant and are less likely to gain traction among the electorate. Recent assembly poll results demonstrate that Congress lost even in states like Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh that have significant SC, ST and OBC populations and although Rahul Gandhi made fervent appeals for conducting caste census, it hardly resonated among the masses. In the 21st century aspirational and ambitious India, what matters really is to harness the potential of demographic dividend by making substantial and meaningful investments in health, education,housing, employment generation and skill development, building modern infrastructure, leveraging digitalisation for good governance and adopting a climate resilient and sustainable, equitable economic model.
By harking back on arcane ideas like caste census and wealth redistribution, the Congress party wants to impose a prototype of an authoritarian, undemocratic, totalitarian Communist regime that would have scant regard for meritocracy, individual achievement and just means of wealth creation and would unscrupulously squander away the tax payer’s money and country’s resources on social constituencies that favour its political calculus – endangering the very existence of the vast majority of the populace, as a typical exploitative state does.
