In the crucial Mumbai civic polls fight, the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) appears to be way ahead of the other players, at least in its manifesto promises. A well-crafted and politically heavy manifesto with an innovative cover page resembling a “stamp paper” was released by Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Tuesday.
Opposition parties mocked the BJP for its idea of “stamp paper” manifesto. “People have seen Modi and Fadnavis going back on their promises. Party knows that people won’t believe them anymore, hence the stamp paper. Lying on oath anyway invites perjury, people will tell the BJP on February 21,” said NCP and Congress leaders. The NCP also charged BJP with “lifting” many points from their manifesto and NCP corporators’ proposals.
BJP's sharp and focused “vachannama” covered all possible issues which affect the 1.2 crore citizens of the commercial capital. This included even those which had been close to its “friend-turned-foe” Shiv Sena’s heart for many years. For instance, Bal Thackeray’s grand memorial, Marathi Asmita, boosting Marathi language, culture and Marathi-medium schools, inclusion of the history of “Samyukta Maharashtra” in schools and renovation of Mumbai Devi temple are among the promises made.
Interestingly, none of them are part of Sena’s manifesto or poll campaigns. Shiv Sena has, however, promised to give preference in jobs to those who have studied in BMC schools apart from free bus passes to BMC schoolkids.
Promises like the renovation of the Haji Ali Dargah and the cemetery for Shia community are also among BJP’s main promises, which would have easily been dubbed as “Muslim appeasement” by the party had the opposition parties talked about them.
However, a few will effectively unsettle and upset the Shiv Sena, its alliance partner in the BMC for 20 years, as the BJP sought to distance itself completely from all corruption in the civic body thus suggesting that Shiv Sena alone was fully responsible for all the “mess” in civic services.
Among these promises is the investigation by a retired judge of all PPP projects done in the last 20 years, internal and external audit of the BMC's functioning and dismantling the cartels of “local contractors and politicians” to bring in multinational firms for Mumbai roads.
“We will make it mandatory for every contractor, corporator and BMC officers to disclose their income and assets every year. Their cartels, which keeps global firms like L&T away from civic projects, will be dismantled so that Mumbai can get pothole-free roads,” Fadnavis said, asserting that the “transparency” offered by BJP should it win the BMC polls. Incidentally, NCP and Congress too have made similar promises and have proposed concretisation of all roads.
BJP also promised a Up-Lokayukta specially for Mumbai, along with a task force for internal and external audit of the civic body if it wins BMC. The move is being seen as the party’s effort to tell the voters it is serious on corruption.
Opposition parties, though, called it a “bluff”, claiming that the Lokayukta institution was already “toothless” and hence the promise was nothing more than “jumla”. “State government already has powers to investigate the civic bodies corruption,” said Nawab Malik of NCP. “Details and status of all projects sanctioned to each ward are to be declared every six months along with officers, contractors name and contact details. Area
BJP's Ashish Shelar said that details and status of all projects sanctioned to each ward will be declared every six months along with officers, the contractor's name and contact details. "Area Sabhas and ALMs can keep a tab on the work,” he added.
Poorly kept roads in Mumbai seem to be “highly sensitive issue” as all four major players have promised to make them pothole-free if people elect them to power. While BJP talks about pothole-free, bottleneck-free, dust-free, floods-free roads by “breaking the cartel of local politicians, contractors and Babus” and inviting global firms for the job, Congress promises to make city roads concretised in the next seven years with every pothole to be filled within 24 hours.
As against the Congress’ promises of affordable meals, free water schemes visibly targeted at underprivileged vote bank, BJP’s manifesto also mentioned the “garib fund” aimed at improving basic infrastructure for slum areas. Apart from 24/7 water, rights to services and more petrol-CNG stations across the eastern and western suburbs, BJP’s document talks big about health services.
It promises five new medical colleges and addition of more UG and PG seats in the medical colleges, health card and Rs 5 lakh medical insurance to every citizen, a new cancer hospital, trauma center in each BMC hospital, 500 extra ventilators, TB hospital’s renovation, skin bank, two hospitals on the lines of the Kasturba Hospital in the eastern and western suburbs for “communicable diseases”.
To impress female voters, the party supports the “Right to pee for women” and promises e-toilets at every one kilometre, with sanitary napkin vending and disposal machines across the city if elected to power. BJP promises Rs 5,000 fixed bank deposit for every girl born in a BMC hospital, which can be encashed when the girl reaches the age of 18.
Among many promises for youth, the BJP also talked about CCTV coverage at all beaches, which has surprised many. “This would be like breach of privacy,” said a BCom student.
