BJP’s Karnataka poll manifesto promises UCC, NRC; freebies for BPL families | India News – Times of India

BENGALURU: BJP’s bid for a second consecutive term in Karnataka came riding a poll manifesto Monday containing a mix of welfare promises and wide-ranging changes such as implementation of the proposed uniform civil code and NRC in the state, a special police wing to combat religious fundamentalism and terrorism, and an upgrade for Bengaluru to the status of a ‘state capital region’, or SCR, on the lines of NCR.
The party promises to provide free cooking gas cylinders thrice a year – on Ugadi, Ganesh Chathurthi and Diwali – to BPL families, besides 5kg of rice a month and half a litre of free Nandini milk a day.
Congress has been accusing BJP of trying to promoting Gujarat’s Amul in Karnataka in an attempt to “strangle” Nandini, the Karnataka milk cooperative.
BJP vows special police wing to fight religious fanaticism
The BJP poll manifesto released on Monday speaks of transforming Karnataka into the country’s hub of electric vehicles by setting up charging stations, supporting 1,000 startups, converting BMTC buses into a fully electric fleet and creating an “EV City” on the outskirts of Bengaluru.
“We will implement the uniform civil code in Karnataka, based on the recommendations of a high-level committee to be constituted for the purpose,” BJP national president J P Nadda said after releasing the manifesto for the May 10 poll.
He said the proposed NRC exercise was meant to ensure speedy deportation of illegal immigrants.
The special police wing mentioned in the manifesto will be called Karnataka-State Wing Against Religious Fundamentalism and Terror (K-SWIFT), Nadda said. The proposal comes in the wake of criticism within the party that Hindu activists aren’t being “protected” adequately from attacks by various outfits.
On whether BJP was ignoring minorities by proposing schemes that were mainly targeted at Hindus, party chief Nadda claimed schemes like the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and the Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Yojana had benefited minority communities the most. “We intend to take entire society along,” he said.
Nadda also contested criticism that BJP was falling back on freebies, something PM Modi recently denounced as “revdi culture”. He said there was a difference between the freebies announced by other parties and the “empowering schemes” of BJP.
“We firmly believe that there should be justice for all and appeasement of none in our vision document for Karnataka for the next 25 years.”
According to the manifesto, the proposal for a state capital region encompasses a comprehensive city development strategy that will include cohesive transportation networks and cutting-edge digital integration.
One of the main projects will be the establishment of a multi-modal transport hub and the creation of a unified transit network on the lines of Transport for London, aiming to revolutionise the city’s commuter experience and develop Bengaluru as a global hub of digital innovation.
The manifesto also promises subsidised “Atal food centres” for the poor like the “Indira Canteens” started by Congress when Siddaramaiah was CM in 2017.