Chhattisgarh Elections 2023: Voters here take manifestos very seriously leaving both Congress, BJP wary

Chhattisgarh elections 2023: Voters are closely scrutinising whether a party has fulfilled its commitments or not.

The first phase of Assembly Elections in the state of Chhattisgarh, which was held on November 7 yielded a voter turnout of 76.47 percent. The second phase is scheduled for November 17.

Congress’s 2018 Manifesto Effort

In Chhattisgarh, the election manifesto has always played a significant role, be it in 2013 or 2018 or the ongoing 2023 elections. In 2018, while the Congress party was in the opposition, they had put in tremendous efforts to draft a manifesto for Chhattisgarh that covered all the aspects of where the state was lagging.

They formed a committee chaired by TS Singhdeo, the then Leader of Opposition, who toured the length and breadth of the state from Surguja to Bastar, meeting people from all walks of life, and understanding their needs and problems. After that, the Congress Party released its comprehensive election manifesto.

Having languished for 15 years without power in the 90-seat legislative assembly, Congress’s manifesto held tremendous significance. It contained promises ranging from ending outsourcing in government jobs, purchasing paddy at Rs 2,500 per quintal, and regularising contractual employees, to implementing a complete liquor ban in the state. The manifesto also had enticing promises made to the farmers, women, youth, and the business community.

2018: BJP Pays For Unkept Jobs Promises

Back in 2013, the BJP too had made numerous promises, several among which remained unfulfilled, resulting in a poor performance for the party in the 2018 elections, where it barely managed to secure 15 seats. The BJP’s 2018 defeat highlighted the crucial importance of delivering on electoral promises made, or get punished by voters. It seemed to suggest that voters are closely scrutinising whether a party has fulfilled its commitments or not.

In 2013, the BJP made promises aimed at benefiting impoverished families, through schemes such as providing rice at Re 1 per kg, saur sujla yojana for installing solar pumps for farmers, and health facility via smart card. They also assured free laptops and tablets to the state’s college-bound students.

Although such initiatives did find success, however, their commitment to direct recruitment in government vacancies and ensuring 90 percent employment to the local youth in private organisations and industries fell short. During this span, a tremendous increase was observed in the outsourcing of government positions, which faced strong opposition from the state’s youth.

2023: Congress’s Jobs Quagmire, MSP War  

The Congress party in its 2018 Manifesto, promised to end outsourcing and regularising contractual employees in the state government departments. In the past five years, outsourcing has decreased, but allegations of corruption have tainted several recruitments, including some that led to judicial interventions, resulting in unnecessary delays in recruitment. However, the promise to regularise irregular employees remains unfulfilled, and in their 2023 manifesto, Congress chose to remain silent over this issue.

For the farmers, the BJP had promised to escalate the support price for paddy to Rs 2,100 per quintal and provide a bonus worth Rs 300 per quintal in 2013. However, in the final two fiscal years of their term, the BJP failed to deliver the promised bonus to the farmers. Congress, in its 2018 manifesto, assured paddy procurement at Rs 2,500 per quintal and waive off farm loans.

This strategy proved to be a masterstroke for the Congress Party in 2018. Learning from this, the BJP’s 2023 manifesto has announced paddy procurement at Rs 3,100  per quintal and even make good the bonus payments of Rs 300 per quintal that it failed to provide since 2016. Congress has promised to procure paddy at Rs 3,200 per quintal and waive off farm loans as they did in 2018.

2013-2018 Govt’s Failures Hurting BJP?

In 2013, the BJP manifesto promised the initiation of metro and monorail projects, attempts to grant special state status to Chhattisgarh, initiating English medium schools in all 146 blocks, and campaigns at the state level to encourage rural sports and development.

These were some of the significant announcements that the BJP could not deliver from 2013 to 2018. In contrast, Congress waived off the loans of farmers, implemented the purchase of paddy at Rs 2,500 per quintal, established Swami Aatmanand Government English medium schools across the state and organised the Chhattisgarh Olympics to promote local sports.

However, the Congress government did not take any significant steps to implement a liquor ban, as promised in its 2018 manifesto.

Given the BJP’s poor implementation of its 2013 manifesto and the Congress’s ambitious 2018 manifesto and comparatively better track record with its implementation, there is growing scepticism regarding the BJP’s promises for 2023. This despite the BJP putting in significant effort in drafting its 2023 manifesto, evident from the clarity of their commitments.

A few months ago, Congress appeared to be in a strong position, while the BJP seemed relatively weaker. However, the tables have turned today, and a neck-and-neck competition looms on the horizon.

Harsh Dubey is a political commentator based in Raipur. Views are personal, and do not represent the stance of the publication.