Amidst the corridors of New Delhi, the assertion from the Congress party reverberates, heralding the resonance of former leader Rahul Gandhi’s call for insights on the party’s electoral manifesto. Social media, the modern agora of discourse, stands witness to this resounding engagement, indicating a profound contemplation of the document amongst the populace. Privy to insider accounts, it transpires that mere hours after Rahul Gandhi’s brief entreaty graced the digital realm of Instagram, a torrential wave ensued: 2.4 crore views amassed solely on Instagram, juxtaposed with an additional 25 crore views across diverse social media platforms. This deluge of views was accompanied by a deluge of inputs, with over a lakh suggestions flooding in, coupled with a barrage of feedback and over 3,000 exhaustive emails directed to the erstwhile Congress luminary.
“This palpable discourse underscores the manifest engagement with our ideological framework,” proclaims a seasoned AICC functionary. Unveiling the manifesto on April 5, Rahul Gandhi asserted its resonance with the collective ethos, hailing it as a blueprint for the nation’s future, and a panacea for the myriad woes that have besieged the populace over the past decade under the Modi administration, notably the specters of unemployment and soaring inflation.
At its core, the party’s manifesto for 2024 emerges as a natural progression from Rahul Gandhi’s Nyay doctrine, which promised an annual infusion of Rs 72,000 directly into the coffers of the destitute during the 2019 national elections. The genesis of the Nyay scheme lay in meticulous consultations with luminaries such as Prof Abhijit Banerjee and former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, underscoring its potential as a transformative force during the preceding Lok Sabha elections.
Yet, the party found itself grappling with the intricacies of elucidating this paradigm to the electorate, thereby mitigating its impact during the 2019 national polls. Furthermore, the party’s overreliance on the contentious Rafale fighter jet deal failed to resonate with the electorate, as per the observations of party insiders.
Determined not to traverse the trodden path of past missteps, party strategists have charted an elaborate roadmap to disseminate the 2024 manifesto. As part of this strategy, state units have been mobilized to embark on a door-to-door campaign, dispensing guarantee cards to approximately eight crore households nationwide. Concurrently, press briefings are slated to unfold across 25 pivotal cities on April 10 and 11, amplifying the reach of this pivotal document.