It will be a people’s manifesto next year, says Chidambaram

Listening to people is foundation of democracy: former Finance Minister

Open invitation: Congress leaders P. Chidambaram and Sanjay Nirupam at in Bandra on Saturday.

Former Finance Minister and head of Congress’ Manifesto Committee P. Chidambaram visited Mumbai on Saturday to meet with traders, experts, professionals and citizens to seek suggestions to be incorporated in the party’s manifesto for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

In an interaction held at the Bandra Bandstand amphitheatre, Mr. Chidambaram was joined by Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament from Karnataka Rajeev Gowda, Mumbai Regional Congress Committee president Sanjay Nirupam, former Vice Chancellor, Mumbai University, Bhalchandra Mungekar and journalist and politician Kumar Ketkar.

“We are changing the way election manifestos are written. (Congress president) Rahul Gandhi feels we need to incorporate people’s suggestions and needs into our manifesto. Hence, we are here to listen to what citizens have to say,” Mr. Nirupam said while referring to the party’s manifesto as the ‘People’s Voice Manifesto.’

Calling the Bhartiya Janata Party’s style of working ‘arrogant’, Mr. Chidambaran said, “Listening to the people is the very foundation of democracy. If citizens demand that the government curb fuel prices and if the government refuses to fulfil these demands, it cannot be called a democracy.”

Mr. Gowda urged the crowd of 300 people at the event to allow non-party members to speak first.

Raphael D’Souza, president of the All India Catholic Union, said that women and children’s safety should be considered and an equal number of women should be nominated from the Congress should the party come into power. Meanwhile, a representative of the All India Defence Federation, in connection with the Rafale deal, stressed the need to look into aggressive privatisation and outsourcing of defence contracts to private companies.

A lawyer practising at the Bombay High Court suggested infrastructural changes and appointment of more judges in order to clear over 3.3 crores pending cases.

Ajanta Yadav, president of the Mahila Congress Committee, said, “A single window system should be brought in place so that victims of harassment of any kind at workplaces can lodge complaints and ensure action.”

Other suggestions offered by the crowd pertained to the poor drainage system in the country, water scarcity that the State faces every year, inflation and the rising rate of unemployment, while businessmen also expressed concern about the current state of the stock market.