Assam Election: Congress Manifesto Promises Rs 2000 For Housewives, Anti-CAA Law

Congress manifesto housewives benefit: Indian National Congress (INC) leader Rahul Gandhi released the party manifesto Saturday, ahead of the Assam assembly election 2021. Key promises made include monetary compensation for housewives across the state, an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act law and an increase in wages for tea plantation workers.

"Though Congress symbol is there in the document, actually it is the people's manifesto. It contains the aspirations of the people of Assam," Gandhi said while releasing the manifesto at the Congress office in Guwahati. "We are aware that the RSS and BJP are attacking diverse cultures of this nation. Attacking our languages, history, our way to thinking, our way of being. So this manifesto provides a guarantee that we will defend the idea of the state of Assam," he added.

Under Congress Manifesto Housewives, Tea Plantation Workers To Benefit

The manifesto, outlining benefits if INC comes to power, says that each homemaker in Assam will receive Rs 2000 monthly. A hike of Rs 365 has also been promised for workers in tea gardens.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had earlier, countering Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's tea-plucking photo, said they would give pregnant women workers at tea gardens Rs 12,000 along with maternity leave for six months.

In March, a group of women's activists in Assam had come together to draft the Women’s Manifesto 2021, elaborating on policies they sought for political parties to imbibe in their respective manifestos for the upliftment of women in the state. Demands ranged from livelihood security, increased reservation for women in elected bodies, to equitable economic participation.

Other highlights from Congress manifesto for Assam: 

• Five lakh government jobs to combat unemployment
• 200 units of free electricity for all
• Defending the "idea of Assam," retaining cultures and history
• Scrapping the CAA, a controversial act that prompted the breakout of protests across India between 2019 and 2020 amid reported fears of Indian citizenship loss for some sections.

Assam polls will be held between March and April in three phases.