Bhopal: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its manifesto for the upcoming Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections on 11 November 2023. The manifesto, titled ‘Modi’s guarantee of BJP’s trust’, was unveiled by the party’s national president JP Nadda at the Kushabhau Thackeray auditorium in the presence of several senior leaders and ministers.
The manifesto contains 10 key resolutions that the party vows to implement if it returns to power in the state. These include providing free ration, pulses, mustard oil, and sugar to all families under the Prime Minister Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana for five years, ensuring that no family remains homeless by launching the Chief Minister Public Housing Scheme along with the Prime Minister’s Housing Scheme and giving monthly financial assistance and housing benefits to the women of the state.
The manifesto also promises to arrange for the purchase of wheat at Rs 2700 per quintal and paddy at Rs 3100 per quintal with minimum support price (MSP), to give Rs 12,000 annually to the beneficiaries of the Prime Minister Kisan Samman Nidhi and the Chief Minister Kisan Kalyan Yojana, and to ensure that the tendu leaf collectors get Rs 4,000 per bag.
The BJP manifesto also focuses on the education and employment sectors, pledging to provide free education till class 12th for all students from poor families, to offer nutritious breakfast along with mid-day meals in government schools, to establish the Madhya Pradesh Institute of Technology on the lines of IIT and Madhya Pradesh Institute of Medical Science on the lines of AIIMS in each division, and to ensure at least one employment or self-employment opportunity in every family.
Speaking at the manifesto launch, Nadda said that the BJP has made its vision document its road map and that the party works on three formulas: Interform, Reform, and Transform. He said that the BJP fulfills its promises by giving responsibility to all the ministers and reviewing them from time to time. He contrasted this with the other parties, who he said make promises and forget them.
Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan also addressed the gathering and slammed the Congress for questioning the timing of the manifesto release on the day of Narak Chaturdashi. He said that the Congress does not know the culture of the state and the country and that on this day, Lord Krishna freed 16,000 queens from the clutches of Narakasura. He also accused some Congress leaders of calling Uncle Kansa and some of sending Shri Ram into exile for 13 years.
State President Vishnudutt Sharma said that the manifesto was prepared after taking suggestions from the public, the society, and the experts. He said that the party collected more than 7 lakh suggestions and 50,000 resolutions in the conferences held in all the 10 divisions. He said that the manifesto is not just a few pages but it is the trust of the public and that it is the party’s responsibility to fulfill it.
The Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections are scheduled to be held on 17 November 2023. The BJP is seeking to retain power in the state, where it has been ruling since 2003, except for a brief period of 15 months when the Congress formed the government in 2018. The Congress, on the other hand, is hoping to regain its lost ground and challenge the BJP’s dominance. The main issues in the polls are likely to be the COVID-19 pandemic, the farm laws, the unemployment, the inflation, and the law and order situation.
