Restoration of the pre-2004 pension scheme, regularisation of contract employees after two years, enhanced daily wages, social security pension and appointment of anti-corruption grievances commissioner were the other promises made in the manifesto.
'Though a foreigner on campus, she carried herself with confidence.'
Union minister Nitin Gadkari will head a committee which will reach out to social and volunteer organisations while his Cabinet colleague Sushma Swaraj will head a group that will produce literature for the polls.
Here's the word cloud of the Congress manifesto that was released on Wednesday.
'Money power was deployed like an army in a war.' 'None of the MVA parties had that kind of money.'
"Preparations for the regular budget are on... priorities are listed in the manifesto. (These) Will get reflected in the finance minister's budget speech," said the new minister of state for finance Namo Narain Meena. 'The focus of the new measures will be to stimulate demand in the domestic economy and to ensure there is more purchasing power in the hands of the people and more liquidity in the hands of the companies,' the Congress manifesto says.
The Centre is considering a proposal on increasing coverage under the Ayushman Bharat scheme to Rs 10 lakh from the current Rs 5 lakh.
On Tuesday, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi accused BJP MP Anurag Thakur of "abusing and insulting" him during the Lok Sabha discussion on the Union Budget.
Gandhi's remarks come amid repeated attacks by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying that the Congress manifesto bears a 'Muslim League imprint'.
Narendra Modi on Thursday tore into the Congress manifesto, calling it a "bundle of lies" and unkept promises, and also accused the Nitish Kumar government of "nurturing and abetting" terrorism for "vote-bank" politics.
'Slogans like 'Ek hai toh safe hai' and 'Batenge toh katenge' resonated with voters.'
SP chief Akhilesh Yadav said the future of the country should be better for all sections, including farmers and Muslims.
'The BJP talks about prosperity, but it doesn't want anybody to prosper.'
BJP members, including the Leader of Opposition Sunil Sharma, opposed the resolution, saying it was not part of the listed business.
'We have to keep a watch because India-Sri Lanka has a history that whenever there has been a change in government, either the connectivity projects have been questioned or cancelled or revived.'
'For politicians, winning the next election has become more important than economic stability of the country and broader national interest.'
The idea is to make unexceptionable broad promises so as to have the maximum freedom to devise policies if and when the opportunity arises, says Subir Roy.
Months before the Haryana assembly polls, the Bharatiya Janata Party replaced its strongman Manohar Lal Khattar as chief minister with low-profile OBC leader Nayab Singh Saini, a decision that surprised many.
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on Monday released the Bharatiya Janata Party's manifesto for the state assembly elections, saying that it is a blueprint for development of all sections of the society.
Taking the war of freebies to a new high, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam manifesto for the April 13 assembly elections on Thursday promised 20 kg of free rice for ration card-holders, laptops for students from classes XI, free fans, mixers and grinders to all and mineral water to BPL families. In a bid to woo women voters, Jayalalithaa promised four gm of gold for the 'thali' (mangalsutra) free of cost to the poor, besides cable TV connections at subsidised rate
The new TDP government will have to mop up over Rs 10,000 crore to fulfill the financial requirements for July, a retired senior bureaucrat said.
Till date the party has made over 1.5 lakh calls to prospective voters.
'Till a few years ago, girls wouldn't take an autorickshaw alone. Now, things have improved.'
'People in politics have lost the value of being connected to their own people.' 'Now it's all about vote share, vote bank, how many parties can you break and make them join you.'
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the main opposition Congress will release their respective election manifestos for the upcoming assembly elections in Gujarat on Monday.
'More than 9.5% new voters have been added to the electoral voters' list compared to the 2024 Lok Sabha election.' 'This led to an increase in about 5% to 6% in total votes polled for this assembly election.' 'That has tilted hugely in our favour because we worked hard for registration of these voters and concentrated on bringing out these new voters out during this assembly election.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said the decision to transform Jammu and Kashmir into a Union Territory is 'temporary' and the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government will restore the statehood to the region.
National Conference leader Omar Abdullah was sworn in as the chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, the first elected government in the Union Territory since 2019 when Article 370 was abrogated.
Union Minister Arun Jaitley while releasing the document said BJP's manifesto is particularly aimed at improving the social infrastructure in Punjab, even as he slammed Congress for its policies which he alleged paved way for militancy in Punjab in 1980s and termed its 2002-2007 tenure in power as "most dishonest and corrupt".
He referred to the Modi government scheme providing five kilograms of ration to the poor every month and said, "The Congress brought the Food Security Act, you did nothing."
MARD has lost deposits on all seats it has contested so far since it was formed in 2018 but its leaders say they are undeterred by elections losses.
'If we want real democracy, the economy itself will need to be democratised.'
The big surprise is that Narendra Modi, the greatest conjurer in our national politics, has not yet presented a theme to this election, observes Shekhar Gupta.
Hours before the ceremony, Saini visited the Valmiki Bhawan and offered prayers at a gurdwara and the Mansa Devi temple in Panchkula.
The term of the 22nd Law Commission, which is without a chairperson for the past few months, ends Saturday with its key report on the uniform civil code still in works. The report prepared by the law panel on simultaneous elections is ready and is pending submission to the law ministry.
This election will be remembered for being the first election where the Election Commission failed to take action on gross violations involving the ruling party that repeatedly used religion, communal slurs, lies and undocumented allegations, observes Ramesh Menon.
Reflecting United States President Obama's consistent refrain in recent weeks while on the stump campaigning for his re-election where he has been railing against the outsourcing of American jobs to China, India, and elsewhere, the national Democratic manifesto unveiled at the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte, North Carolina, has said, "The Democratic Party believes in insourcing so that America can out-build the rest of the world again."
Hailing the Congress manifesto as a visionary document promising to shape a better future for Punjab, Dr Singh said the Parkash Singh Badal-led government mismanaged the state and failed to harness its full potential.
'One nation, one election' is not possible under the present Constitution. It requires at least five constitutional amendments'
All four gates of Jagannath temple in Puri were reopened for devotees on Thursday morning in the presence of Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and his council of ministers.
