The Aryavarth Express
Agency (New Delhi): The Indian National Congress party today released its manifesto for the 2024 general elections, placing social justice and empowerment at the heart of its agenda. Pointing to the widening inequality gap in India, where the top 1% now own 73% of the country’s wealth (Oxfam, 2023), the party outlined a series of measures to uplift marginalized communities.
A key promise is to conduct a nationwide Socio-Economic Caste Census (SECC) to capture the current realities of caste and class. The last such exercise in 2011 revealed that over 70% of rural households owned no land and relied on manual labor for sustenance. Building on this data, Congress pledges to amend the Constitution to raise the 50% cap on caste-based reservations.
The manifesto also prioritizes filling the nearly 14 lakh backlog vacancies in reserved posts across central government departments and public sector banks (Indian Express, 2023). It promises to double scholarships for SC/ST students, establish residential schools in every block, and enact a law mandating reservations in private educational institutions.
Recognizing the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on India’s 20 crore religious minorities (Census 2011), Congress vows to uphold their constitutional rights, encourage youth skilling and entrepreneurship, and support reform of personal laws through community dialogue. It also promises to grant constitutional status to the Minorities Commission.
For the 13.8 crore senior citizens in India (MoSPI, 2021), the manifesto pledges to raise the monthly central pension from a meager Rs. 200-500 to Rs. 1000, provide legal aid against abuse and fraud, and restore travel concessions. It recognizes the rights of India’s estimated 2.7 crore persons with disabilities (MoSPI, 2016) and the LGBTQIA+ community, promising accessible education, anti-discrimination laws, and civil union rights.
On the health front, even as Indians’ out-of-pocket expenditure on healthcare remains among the world’s highest at 54.8% (WHO, 2019), Congress promises a right to universal free healthcare through the public system. It vows to redesign insurance schemes, provide free maternal care, and raise the health budget from the current 1.2% of GDP to 4% by 2028-29.
As India’s income inequality continues to worsen, with the Gini coefficient rising from 74.4% in 2000 to 82.3% in 2021 (World Inequality Report, 2022), the Congress manifesto offers a bold roadmap for social justice and inclusive development. However, it remains to be seen whether the party can mobilize the political will and resources needed to translate these promises into reality.