The ruling AIADMK on Tuesday released an ambitious manifesto for the Lok Sabha election, with promises such as introducing a national-level poverty alleviation scheme to provide ₹1,500 a month to a target population, including families living below the poverty line, waiving education and farm loans, granting statehood to Puducherry, securing exemption for Tamil Nadu from NEET and implementing water management schemes, among others.
The AIADMK, which is heading an alliance, of which the BJP is a constituent, promised that it would impress upon the Centre that the Common Civil Code “should not be made applicable to the religious minorities in order to protect their religious rights, as safeguarded in our Constitution.”
The party said it would continue to press for the abolition of Article 356 of the Constitution, which enables the dismissal of elected State governments, arguing that such a provision is “not found in any other federal system”.
Since the results of the implementation of a special programme of direct transfer of ₹1,000 to all ration cardholders in Tamil Nadu and ₹2,000 to each family living below the poverty line (BPL) were “found to be very promising”, the AIADMK came up with the scheme for providing ₹1,500 a month to BPL families across the State, the manifesto said.
The target population would include BPL families, destitute women, widows without income, the differently-abled, landless agricultural labourers, rural and urban manual labourers and destitute senior citizens, among others.
I-T exemption limit
The ruling party, which has been maintaining “cordial ties” with the BJP since the death of former CM Jayalalithaa, also promised that it would “take necessary action to increase the income tax exemption limit to ₹8 lakh and the standard deduction to ₹1 lakh”.
Citing the example of TESDA (Technical Education and Skills Development Authority) of the Philippines, the party said it would pursue vigorously with the Central government the creation of a similar institution in the country to upgrade the skills of the youth.
The party would urge the Centre to implement three major schemes – linking Coimbatore district with Noyyal river and the Western Ghats as the base, in Namakkal district with river Cauvery as its base and the Cauvery - Agniyaru - South Vellaru link scheme, Mr. Panneerselvam said.
An economic policy to mitigate the adverse impact of recessions on agriculture and the industrial sector, urging the Centre to give up its policy of bringing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) into the retail sector, transferring Education from the Concurrent List to the State list and seeking an exemption from NEET are the prominent promises made by the AIADMK.
Need-based allocation of full quantum of wheat and kerosene for all ration cardholders under PDS, legislation to enable the implementation of reservation in the private sector and GST exemption for handlooms for the benefit of weavers also found prominence in the manifesto.
“The AIADMK will urge the Government of India to press the Sri Lankan government for due devolution of administrative power to the Tamil Eelam regions and for the provision of constitutional guarantees for Eelam Tamils with regard to their rights,” the manifesto said. The party also promised to reiterate its request to the Centre and the President to release all seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case.
Meanwhile, actor Karthik, who heads a political outfit, extended his support to the AIADMK for the polls.
