Ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, the Congress party is coming out with more freebies to woo the various sections including women, youth and farmers. The Congress party's move is aimed at countering the BJP's GYAN (Gareeb, Youth, Annadata, Naari) initiative. Since women constitute around 50 per cent of India's population, and the previous voting patterns have indicated their shift towards the BJP, the Congress has come out with lucrative promises to woo the section.


Congress' Five Guarantees For Women


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Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said that the party is giving 5 guarantees which will 'change the lives of women in the country forever'. Detailing the promises, Rahul Gandhi said that under the Mahalakshmi Yojana, one woman from the poorest family will get Rs 1 lakh every year. It also promised a quota for the women. The Congress party said that one of the five guarantees is to reserve half of all new recruitments in the central government for women. Thus, they promised a 50% quota for women in government jobs.


The Congress also promised to double the central government's contribution to the salaries of ASHAs, Anganwadis and mid-day meal women workers. The party also promised to appoint an Adhikar Maitri in all Panchayats, who will make women aware and help them get their legal rights. To woo the working women, the party promised to double the number of hostels for working women and promised to make at least one hostel in every district.



The Congress said that its aim is to make half the country's population economically self-reliant and to provide equal representation. Rahul Gandhi said that these five steps are going to open the 'door to prosperity' for women.


Countering BJP's Schemes


By promising several freebies and welfare schemes for women, the Congress is looking to counter the BJP's growing women vote bank. Since the Narendra Modi government came to power, the NDA government has launched various schemes for women including tap water, toilets, housing, the LPG scheme Ujjwala, electricity, Lakhpati didi yojana, Drone didi and triple talaq bill. Thus, the Congress is looking to regain its lost vote bank by promising the above schemes for women of the country. In the 2019 polls, it was estimated that a majority of women voted for the BJP, especially in the Hindi belt and that led to a decisive victory of the BJP for the second straight term. Thus, the Congress is well aware of the repercussions of losing women voters and thus is taking no chance ahead of the Lok Sabha polls.