Ahead of the assembly elections in Goa, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday made a slew of promises, including a grant of ₹72,000 per family per year under the ‘Nyay’ scheme and capping the prices of fuel at ₹80 per litre, as he released the party’s manifesto.
Polling for the 40-member Goa legislative assembly will be held on February 14 and the votes will be counted on March 10.
The Congress has taken a historic decision for the welfare of the poor in Goa, Gandhi said.
“We have designed a Nyay scheme for Goans under which every month ₹6,000 ( ₹72,000 a year) will be going directly to the account of the poor of the state. It would be transferred automatically,” he said, while addressing a poll rally.
“We do not want anyone to stay hungry in this state. We do not want anyone to fear not being able to send their children to school and college,” he added.
The former Congress president also asserted the real fight in the coastal state is between his party and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and urged people “not to waste their votes by supporting others who are also in the fray”.
“The reality is that the fight in Goa is between the Congress and the BJP, rest of the political parties are not in the race...,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}“The reality is that the fight in Goa is between the Congress and the BJP, rest of the political parties are not in the race...,” he added.
{{/usCountry}}“We want a Congress government with a full majority. Every vote is precious. Fight together and elect a new Goa government that will listen to you before taking decisions,” Gandhi said.
The Congress has forged a pre-poll alliance with the Goa Forward Party (GFP), a former BJP ally. Under the alliance, the Congress is contesting on 37 seats, leaving the other three for the GFP. Besides the Congress and the BJP, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Trinamool Congress, Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party (MGP), Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), among others, are also contesting the Goa polls.
The Congress manifesto promised to make Goa surmaya (picturesque), susanskrit (cultured), santulit (sustainable), suvidhya (enlightened), samruddha (affluent), sushasit (well run) and swanandi (happy).
Congress’s Nyay universal basic income scheme was announced by Rahul Gandhi in 2019 in the run up to the Lok Sabha elections.
The manifesto also promised to reserve 30% of jobs in the government sector for women.
Among other promises, include scrapping of three coal-linked infrastructure projects.
It also promised to repeal the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) notification of 2019.
The party also promised to scrap a controversial section 16-B of the Town and Country Planning Act that allowed arbitrary changes in land zoning, paving the way for large-scale piecemeal conversion of green zones into settlement zones for residential, commercial and other projects.
Earlier in the day, Gandhi took part in the party’s campaign in the Mormugao constituency. On Friday, the Congress made its candidates for the Goa assembly elections sign affidavits and take an oath of loyalty to the party in the presence of Gandhi.