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In its manifesto, Cong pledges to engage with Pak to end terrorism, promises to ‘repair’ relations with Maldives, China
Congress leaders released the manifesto at the AICC headquarters days before the country's general elections.
The Congress on Friday released its manifesto for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections at the AICC headquarters in New Delhi. Prominent party leaders, including party chief Mallikarjun Kharge and former party presidents Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, released the manifesto days before the country's general elections.
In its poll manifesto, the Congress promised to ‘repair’ the country’s relations with the Maldives and work with Myanmar to protect the political and human rights of the people of Myanmar. It also pledged to engage with Pakistan on its willingness and ability to end cross-border terrorism. Congress said in its manifesto, “We will repair relations with the Maldives and work with Myanmar to protect the political and human rights of the people of Myanmar. Engagement with Pakistan depends fundamentally on its willingness and ability to end cross-border Terrorism…”
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The party's manifesto also pledged to restore the country's global reputation as a voice of peace and moderation. It also promised to work on restoring the status quo ante on India-China borders.
"Congress will pay greater attention to our immediate neighbours. We will re-establish the primacy of our special relationships with Nepal and Bhutan and strengthen them to our mutual benefit. We will enhance economic and cultural relations between India and Bangladesh, the two most populous countries in South Asia," it added.
The party's manifesto also made some key promises. Here's a look at a few of them:
- In its manifesto, the Congress said it would fill nearly 30 lakh vacancies in sanctioned posts at various levels in central government.
- The party promised to give legal guarantees to MSPs announced by the government every year as recommended by the Swaminathan Commission.
- It guaranteed a national minimum wage of ₹400 per day.
- The party said it would conduct a nationwide socio-economic and caste census to enumerate the castes and sub-castes and their socio-economic conditions, and it would pass a constitutional amendment to raise the 50 per cent cap on reservations for SC, ST, and OBC.
- The party said it would bring a law to recognise civil unions between couples belonging to the LGBTQIA+ community.
- It also promised not to interfere with personal choices of food and dress, to love and marry, and to travel and reside in any part of India.
The party's manifesto also included other promises, such as replacing the GST laws enacted by the BJP/NDA government with GST 2.0, amending the election laws to combine the efficiency of the electronic voting machine (EVM) and the transparency of the ballot paper, and launching the Mahalakshmi scheme to provide ₹1 lakh per year to every poor Indian family as an unconditional cash transfer.
(With inputs from ANI)
