It's raining freebies in MP as Shivraj prepares for Assembly elections

By Sundeep Pouranik
Bhopal, May 12 With elections drawing nearer, it's raining freebies in Madhya Pradesh and the Shivraj Singh Chouhan-led state government has intensified efforts to win the hearts of the people.

For the ruling BJP, the elections - to be held by the end of 2023 - are not going to be easy this time.

The saffron party was voted out of the power in 2018. However, it retained the power after some rebel Congress MLAs led by Jyotiraditya Scindia joined the BJP.

Considering the anti-incumbency factor, the BJP is leaving no stone unturned to please every section, especially those who directly affect the election results.

The same is evident in the state government's recent actions. For instance, schemes for women, youth and farmers are being implemented by the state government.

While the state government took forward the 'Ladli Laxmi Yojana' to further strengthen its hold among women, it has also launched the 'Ladli Bahna' initiative to provide Rs 1,000 to women fulfilling the prescribed conditions and the first tranche of the assistance will deposited to eligible women's bank accounts in June.

Similarly, 'Mukhyamantri Bhu Adhikar Yojana' has been introduced for the homeless people in the state, in which plots are being made available to the poor.

Taking into consideration the size of youth voters in the state, the Shivraj government has also launched the 'Mukhyamantri Yuva Kaushal Kamai Yojana'. In this scheme, the youth of the state will be provided vocational training along with a sum of Rs 8,000 every month till they get a job.

A Youth Commission has also been constituted in the state to make recommendations related to education, sports, culture and employment to the youth.

Besides youth and women, farmers also play a crucial role in deciding elections, and the same was visible in 2018 Assembly elections when the Congress' poll promise of debt waiver scheme greatly influenced farmers of the state. This is the reason why the Shivraj government has not only approved the interest waiver scheme but has also waived off the interest of farmers with loans up to Rs 2 lakh.

Congress has termed the announcements of these schemes and initiatives as an attempt to deceive the public once again.

Ajay Yadav, vice-president of Congress' media wing, says that the BJP is trying to deceive the people. "They have cheated the public in the past and even now they are not desisting in doing so."

"BJP has been in government for 19 years and if they had fulfilled their promises, would this have been the case? People will not fall in his trap now," he asserts.

On the other hand, BJP spokesperson Deepak Vijayvargiya says that his party does what it says. "BJP's track record is that it has fulfilled the all promises made since 2003, people know this. Be it the condition of roads, electricity or the matter of giving loan to the farmers at zero per cent interest rate. As far as Congress is concerned, what we can do if its vision is blurred."