NCP releases poll manifesto, promises various welfare schemes for minorities | Mumbai News

Mumbai: A day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s controversial comments on Muslims in Rajasthan’s Banswara district during the election campaign, the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), the BJP’s ally in Maharashtra, on Monday released its election manifesto and promised various schemes for minorities, especially Muslims.

In its manifesto, the party has underlined that it believes in the right to live irrespective of caste, creed or religion and emphasized that it continues to believe in equality, brotherhood and unity. It has also demanded a caste-based census, a demand first raised by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

The Ajit faction’s election manifesto promises several schemes for the minority community. It includes setting up the Maulana Azad Research and Training Institute to provide them with opportunities for higher education, entrepreneurship and employment, giving semi-English status to Urdu medium schools, the service and facilities oriented policy for Haj pilgrims, and educational and employment opportunities for girls from minority communities and others.

“We will strive to have the Maulana Azad Research and Training Institute at the national level. We will continue to push for the implementation of measures and funds to ensure that students from minority communities are provided with opportunities for higher education, entrepreneurship and employment through this institution,” the election manifesto said.

It will be based on Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar Research and Training Institute (BARTI), which provides loans for higher education and loans for setting up micro-enterprises, among other things, to youth from the Scheduled Castes (SC) community, NCP leaders said. “We will try to improve the quality of education from Urdu medium schools to semi-English schools to increase their educational standards,” the manifesto said, adding, “We will try to emulate the Centre’s special financial policy. ”

The party, which is part of the BJP-led Mahayuti government, also said, “We will push for service and facility-oriented policies for the Haj pilgrims.”

NCP President and Deputy Prime Minister Ajit Pawar also defended their decision to join the BJP-led coalition. “Everyone is aware of the ideology of Shiv Sena. The Congress and Shiv Sena never joined hands until Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray was alive. The changing political situation means we all have to make some decisions, and I’m not alone. Several leaders like Mamata Banerjee (TMC), Mehbooba Mufti (PDP), J Jayalalithaa (AIADMK) and Nitish Kumar (JDU) have taken similar decisions in the past,” he clarified.

The Prime Minister was criticized for his remarks at an election rally in Banswara where he alleged that former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s government had asserted that Muslims deserve first right to the country’s resources. He also warned of the possibility that the Congress would distribute the country’s wealth to “infiltrators” and families with more children if it came to power, which is seen as a clear reference to the Muslims.

“Earlier, when their (Congress) government was in power, they had said that Muslims have the first right to the property of the country. This means that they will distribute this wealth to those who have more children, to infiltrators. Should your hard-earned money be given to infiltrators? Do you agree with this?” Modi asked the audience.

He continued: “The Congress manifesto says they will take stock of the gold that mothers and daughters have and they will divide that wealth. The Manmohan Singh government had said that Muslims have the first right to wealth. This urban Naxal thinking will not spare even the Mangal Sutras of my mothers and sister,” he alleged.