From free laptops to scooty, colour TV sets to electric connection, the BJP has promised it all to woo the voters of Bihar. In the vision document released on Thursday by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, the party also promised broadband service in rural areas by taking the optical fiber network there, five decimal land for housing to landless people, and free one pair of dhoti and sari once a year to each poor family.
Releasing the 18-page colourful document, Jaitley called it a charter of development which would pull out Bihar from its economic backwardness. “The situation in Bihar is akin to 2005 since the producer and director of the Jungle Raj (read lalu Prasad) is again active. By merely changing the actor (read Nitish Kumar) will not change the character. The biggest issue today is to give a push to the help Bihar come out of economic backwardness,” he said.
About the special package of Rs1.25 lakh crore announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Jaitley said the resources for this package will come from the general Budget as well as the budgets of different Ministries. “If they call it repackaging then ask them why the previous Central Government did not implement those projects. They should at least thank us for implementing all those pending projects,” he said.
Taking a dig at Nitish Kumar and his allies, he said they ruled Bihar for 68 years but the State was still far behind in many development indexes.
“The Congress in Bihar has lost ground. The RJD is involved in divisive politics and the JD(U) has no political consistency. The JD(U) is now dependent on the same party which is credited with Jungle Raj. A race cannot be won with just three legs,” said Jaitley. He also fully supported the reservation policy saying it was a reality in the country.
Asked why the BJP was indulging in populist measures, the FM said, “In other States too such promises had been made, and whatever is promised is not impossible to be fulfilled.
Meanwhile, the Election Commission on Thursday took notice of the populist promises announced by the BJP in its vision document. Sources in the Chief Electoral Office said that the documents have been sent to the ECI to look into and decide if it comes under the violation of the model code of conduct. Earlier, an FIR was registered against BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi in Bhabhua for making those promises in his election meeting.
The vision document has promised betterment in all sectors. It promises free laptops to 50,000 meritorious students passing matriculation and Inter exams and scooty to 5,000 girl students passing matric and inter exam on merit every year.
This seemed to be a response to Nitish Kumar’s famous bicycle scheme for all girls, and later for boys, on reaching ninth standard. The party has promised colour TV sets to the dalit/mahadalit hamlets. Accredited journalists have been promised free laptops and as well as group insurance and medicare facility.
Free electric connection to all rural poor, separate feeder for agri works for uninterrupted 12 hours power supply, new vigilance courts for time-bound disposal of corruption cases, and five decimal land to all landless people for construction of houses fitted with power, drinking water and toilet facilities are some other populist measures announced by the party.
In addition, the party has also promised Atal medicine centres for supply of drugs on subsidised rates, reservation of 25% beds for poor in all hospitals made under PPP mode, development of Patna, Gaya, Bhagalpur and Muzaffarpur as coaching hubs, one degree college in each subdivision and one inter school in each panchayat. Making at least one person of each family e-literate is part of the vision document. .
For rape survivors, a one stop rape crisis centre as per the instruction of Justice Usha Mehra will be opened. The document said that if voted to power, the BJP-led Government will open Skill University and separate bureau to help the students desiring to go abroad for higher education. For the minorities, the vision document promised Urdu teachers in all the schools and management and security of Wakf properties. The party also promised effective legislation to check the forced conversion of tribal and others.