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Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh launch mass contact campaign
At a time when the political opponents of the BJP have criticised the party for its policies such a demonetisation and accused it of failing to create more jobs, Shah defended the government by claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi took decisive and difficult steps.
In view of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah, along with home minister Rajnath Singh, on Sunday launched a mass contact programme, as part of which party workers will fan out across the country over the next one month to solicit suggestions from more than 10 crore households on what their expectations from the BJP are, and what should be included in its poll manifesto.
Singh is in-charge of the party’s manifesto team.
The programme — Bharat Ke Mann Ki Baat — comes with a tag line, “kaam kare jo, ummeed usi se ho” (people have expectations from those who work). Under this, nearly 300 vehicles cover the length and breadth of the country, more than 7,700 boxes will be installed across 4,000 assembly constituencies to seek people’s views, and suggestions will be collated over email, mobile phones and social media platforms. The party has also created 12 sub-committees to cover broad areas, including issues such as security, the farm sector, education and skills, the Ram Janmabhoomi issue, but there is no mention of contentious issues such as the abrogation of Article 370 or the implementation of the uniform civil code — both of which have been a key demand over the years.
The exercise of getting to know people’s expectations, Shah explained, was in keeping with the democratic functioning of the BJP. He said that the BJP will also give a full account of the promises it made in its 2014 manifesto, with details of what was fulfilled and what remains to be done.
On how the party would reconcile suggestions that run contrary to the party’s policy, such as a demand for a loan waiver for farmers or brining an ordinance to construct the Ram temple in Ayodhya, Shah said such issues would be debated at the party forum. At a time when the political opponents of the BJP have criticised the party for its policies such a demonetisation and accused it of failing to create more jobs, Shah defended the government by claiming that Prime Minister Narendra Modi took decisive and difficult steps.
He said like the previous governments, the BJP did not bank on “populist measures to win elections”. On the Ram Janamabhoomi issue that the cadre and the top rung of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh wants addressed through a legislation, Shah said, the party’s stand on the issue is clear — it wants a temple at the disputed site. “It is the other political parties that need to make their stand clear,” he said.
Shah also rebuffed questions on the party having failed to create jobs; he said the expansion of roads, railway network, Mudra loans have all added jobs.
He also defended the recently announced financial payout of ₹6,000 a year to farmers with less than two hectares of land under cultivation; and said the amount is an annual income supplement.
