1.25 Lakh Feedback, Over 3,000 Emails On Election Manifesto: Congress

The Indian National Congress has received an overwhelming response to its manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, demonstrating the resonance of its electoral promises. Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has on Sunday took to social media asking for feedback on the party’s recently released election manifesto, titled “Nyay Patra”.

In a video posted on Instagram, Mr Gandhi urged citizens to engage with the manifesto, emphasizing its role as the voice of every Indian.

The statistics unveiled by the Congress party today underscore the magnitude of public engagement with its manifesto. According to the party’s data, the manifesto received significant traction across various platforms. Rahul Gandhi’s Instagram account alone witnessed 2.7 crore views of the manifesto, indicating widespread interest.

Moreover, the manifesto garnered over 28 crore views across all platforms and repostings, reflecting extensive dissemination and engagement. Social media platforms were flooded with over 1.25 lakh comments, offering a diverse range of suggestions and feedback on the electoral promises.

In addition to social media interactions, the Congress party received more than 3,000 detailed emails directly addressed to Rahul Gandhi.

The senior Congress leader, while attending a mega rally in Telangana last week, said that the idea of justice is the soul of the party’s election manifesto. He said it had been drafted on the basis of the feedback of people from across the country.

“We listened to your heart and drafted the manifesto”, Mr Gandhi said, while releasing the ‘Nyay Patra’ (manifesto) in Hyderabad, he said that that once the Congress forms government at the centre, “there will be no family left in the country with less than Rs one lakhs income every year”.

Key takeaways from Congress manifesto include implementing a comprehensive caste census alongside an amendment to raise reservations for SC/ST/OBC communities beyond the current 50% cap, ensuring equitable representation and opportunities for historically marginalized groups, Minimum Support Price (MSP) for agricultural produce as a legal entitlement for farmers, safeguarding their livelihoods and ensuring fair remuneration for their hard work, adopting and scaling up the successful Rajasthan model for cashless healthcare nationwide, ensuring accessible and affordable medical services for all citizens, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds and enforcing a policy of 50% reservation for women in central government jobs, promoting gender equality and empowering women in the workforce.

The manifesto also promises to Institute a one-time waiver scheme for student educational loans, alleviating the burden of debt on young individuals and fostering a conducive environment for skill development and entrepreneurship, and introduction of stringent laws to automatically disqualify any elected representative defecting from their party, ensuring political stability and accountability in governance.

It promises to set up a national goal of doubling GDP within the next decade through strategic investments, innovation-driven policies, and sustainable development initiatives and mandating the use of Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) systems to verify and match Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) tallies, bolstering the credibility and integrity of electoral processes.