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If you want to be happy, vote us back to power, Congress is planning to tell voters in Gujarat ahead of the Assembly elections.
Polls for the 182 seats in the state Assembly would be held by the end of this year. For the past 19 years, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been in power in the state.
At present, the ruling party has 121 seats; Congress has 57. Keen to win back power in the state, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi served as chief minister from 2001 to 2014, the Congress is thinking of novel ways.
As Gujarat is already economically developed, party strategists are planning to focus on the human factor.
Gujarat Congress chief Bharatsinh Solanki said, “BJP rule has caused depression among people. We want to generate hope and happiness.”
Taking a leaf out of the happiness index of Bhutan, the Gujarat unit of the Congress will come up with ideas to spread cheer among voters.
Coined by Bhutan’s fourth king Jigme Singye Wangchuk in the 1970s, Gross National Happiness takes a holistic approach to development, putting as much importance on non-economic aspects as on the economic ones.
Solanki said, “The depression index in our state has increased over the past two decades. We will promote happiness.”
During several weeks of brainstorming sessions, to draft the party’s poll manifesto, the party has identified the reasons for happiness.
The Congress state chief said with growing prosperity and demands of contemporary life, the number of nuclear families were growing. Young professionals did not have the support system of traditional joint families. The party would promote traditional values.
Another issue was paucity of jobs, in a state famous for entrepreneurship. “Things are changing. Many young people are seeking jobs and unemployment is making them depressed,” said Solanki.
This was the reason for the Patidar protests last year, he added.
Taking a cue from their party colleagues and the success of Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, the Congress Gujarat unit is wooing people aged between 18 and 35 years. The party has started enrolment camps across the state.
If elected, Congress promises to create jobs. Also, till they get jobs, Congress would give unemployment allowance of Rs 4,000 for those who have postgraduate degrees, Rs 3,500 for graduates, and school pass-outs would get Rs 3,000 per month.
Gujarat has a population of 65 million, with about 40 million voters. According to Congress estimates, there are about 5 million unemployed youths in the state.
“Contrary to the image of a developed state sold by PM Modi, industry is down in the state,” said Solanki.
The party also plans to woo women, who comprise half the voters. It is promising them houses and assuring them prices of essential items would be controlled.
