On the 9th of May 2024, a video went viral where the Congress candidate from Madhya Pradesh’s Ratlam was heard signalling to Muslims again. Kantilal Bhuria, the Congress candidate from Ratlam during an election rally said that if Congress comes to power, those who have two wives would get Rs 2 lakh a month.
“If Congress comes to power, as our manifesto states, every woman will get Rs 1 lakh in her bank account. Women from each house will get Rs 1-1 lakh. Those who have two wives will get Rs 2 lakh…,” said Congress candidate from MP’s Ratlam, Kantilal Bhuria, while addressing a public rally earlier today.
Bhuria has been the Union minister for tribal affairs in the previous Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government.
Speaking at the rally, Madhya Pradesh Congress chief Jitu Patwari supported what Bhuria said. Patwari said, “Bhuria ji has made a terrific announcement just now that a person with two wives will get double (of the ₹ 1 lakh financial aid).” As per the Congress’ manifesto, under the Mahalaxmi scheme, women will get ₹ 8,500 per month till they move out of the below-poverty line (BPL) segment.
Reportedly, the BJP has demanded action from the Election Commission of India against Bhuria.
The Congress scheme to give Rs 1 lakh to every woman if voted to power is one that would spell doom for India. The scheme in the manifesto reads, “Mahalakshmi: Inequality of income and opportunity remains India’s ugliest truth. It is the moral and political responsibility of any government to ensure that every Indian family is assured of a basic income every month. Congress resolves to launch a Mahalakshmi scheme to provide Rs 1 lakh per year to every poor Indian family as an unconditional cash transfer. The poor will be identified among the families in the bottom of the income pyramid. The amount will be directly transferred to the bank account of the oldest woman of the household. Absent a woman, it will be transferred to the account of the oldest member of the family. The scheme will be rolled out in stages and reviewed every year to assess the number of beneficiary families and its impact on alleviating poverty.
Lack of clarity on funding and about sustainable economic growth in Nari Nyay scheme
The promise of Rs 1 lakh per year per family by Congress lacks clarity on funding. Furthermore, it also undermines the dignity of labour and entrepreneurship. The grand old party has planned to hand out cash without any productive activity attached. Their promise risks fostering a culture of dependency rather than women empowerment. We can compare it to putting a band-aid on a wound that requires surgery.
Moreover, injecting such massive among of cash into the economy will cause inflationary pressure. In rural areas, where the cost of living is comparatively lower, the sudden inflow of cash without increasing productivity will eventually result in price hikes that will erode the purchasing power of the poor.
In addition to the future disasters linked to the scheme, Congress has not planned to create new wealth. In short, it will only add to the inflation without addressing the root cause of poverty. Congress has called for eradicating poverty. For decades, the party leaders including first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, former PM Indira Gandhi and former PM Rajiv Gandhi, all talked about eradicating poverty during elections but never succeeded. The lack of vision always pushed Congress on the back foot.
Congress and its Muslim Pitch for 2024
Rahul Gandhi has been talking about wealth distribution in the run-up to the 2024 elections. He has essentially claimed that there would be a survey of wealth in the nation and then, according to population, the wealth of the nation would be redistributed.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has hit out at the Congress party and its Muslim appeasement politics during an election campaign meeting in Banswara town of Rajasthan. He lambasted the wealth distribution scheme of Congress scion Rahul Gandhi and reminded the voters about the infamous speech of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from 2006. “During the time of their government, they (Congress) had declared that Muslims have the first claim of this country’s resources. First, they will seize your properties and distribute them to Muslims, those who produce a high number of offspring, and infiltrators,” PM Modi emphasised.
The Congress party in its manifesto has also hinted at decriminalising triple talaq and a backdoor entry of the Communal Violence Bill.
Page 8 of the Congress manifesto reads –
4. We will restore the Maulana Azad Scholarships for study abroad and increase the number of scholarships
7. Congress will ensure that, like every citizen, minorities have the freedom of choice of dress, food, language and personal laws.
There are several other promises made in the manifesto that hint at special treatment to the Muslim community, for example, the Congress manifesto also promises greater representation of Muslims in the Judiciary.
Given the Congress’ pitch to get Muslim votes, the statement of Kantilal Bhuria signals a dangerous trend. It is a reality that polygamy is commonplace in the Muslim community. Bhuria talking about those two wives getting double the money if Congress comes to power only signals how the Congress party seems to believe that their only pitch for the 2024 General Elections is to, by any means necessary, hanker for minority votes.