What's Your Take On Congress' Nyay Pitch To Women Voters?

In this political tiff between BJP and Congress, will Rahul Gandhi's Nyay pitch to women voters work? Read up and let us know your take on the same!

women voters nyay

This year the Lok Sabha Elections have a lot happening with both Congress and BJP out with their political daggers. This time Congress president Rahul Gandhi has promised that 20% of the poorest families in India will be given Rs 72,000 each annually if the party comes to power and they have strongly linked its promised Nyunatam Aay Yojana (Nyay) minimum income guarantee scheme to women’s empowerment. He says that the money will go directly into the bank accounts of female members of about 50 million of India’s poorest families. However, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has questioned the principal Opposition party’s record of fighting poverty.

During a rally in Rajasthan, Gandhi termed the party's promise a “surgical strike on poverty”. He added: “It’s a big bang… This is Congress’s surgical strike on poverty. They [the BJP] worked to eliminate the poor, we will eliminate poverty. Nobody should be poor in the country in the 21st century."

nyay women voters

Taking to Twitter, general secretary of Congress, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, this move will empower women within families.

While it is unclear what constitutes the “woman’s vote”, as per reports by media houses, studies have found that women tend to vote on issues like health and availability of water and food over roads and infrastructure.

Gandhi's remarks came after the BJP accused the party of “misleading the people” of the country.

Union minister Nirmala Sitharam also criticised the Congress, saying the party was still relying on the “garibi hatao” slogan which was coined by late prime minister Indira Gandhi in 1971, as it could not drive away poverty during its rule.

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Addressing a news conference in Delhi, Congress’s chief spokesperson Surjewala asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP to spell out whether they supported the minimum income guarantee scheme. He said that it was “shameful that the pro-rich” Modi was opposing the world’s biggest anti-poverty scheme.

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“Every poor family shall be rightfully entitled to Rs 72,000 per annum. This will apply to both urban and rural poor families… Rs 72,000 would be deposited directly in the bank accounts of the woman of the family. So, it is a women-centric scheme," he added.

Well, we all know that this political battle will go on forever, but what former Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan pointed out was that while the scheme could “revolutionise things”, it was the details that mattered.

“The government that comes needs to see what the fiscal space looks like. As of now, it is very tight. You cannot add scheme upon scheme. A view should be taken post elections within the fiscal space available,” Rajan told a leading media house.

Gandhi says that the dynamics have been worked out and discussed with economists.

He said: “We consulted all big economists, without telling anyone, without giving any speech. We were engaged in this work for six months. Take the list of all big economists of the world, we consulted them...Raghuram Rajan... one by one."

The scheme is mostly a version of universal basic income (UBI), wherein families get a certain sum of money regardless of whether they work or not.

This Is What People Had To Say

While some had very positive reactions, supporting the scheme, some had a difference of opinion. Let's take a look at what the aam janta had to say on the scheme announced.

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