AIADMK’s manifesto: Jaya’s national ambitions, freebies for all

mangaloretoday.com / NDTV

Chennai, Feb 25:  Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today gave the nation’s voters a glimpse of what she could offer if she played a national role - free laptops, mixers and grinders, fans, cows and goats.

The manifesto of Jayalalithaa’s AIADMK party for the Lok Sabha polls, due by May, also makes a series of national-level promises that leave no doubts about her prime ministerial ambitions, or at least, her hope of emerging a key player in a government at the Centre.

 

"We have spelt out many policies and promises to implement many schemes and aims not only for the development of Tamil Nadu but also for the progress of the entire nation," she told reporters.

The AIADMK chief has pledged to raise the income tax exemption limit to 5 lakhs, change the price determining mechanism for petrol and diesel, work for a permanent seat for India in the UN Security Council and establish cooperative federalism.

The manifesto says the party will make Sri Lanka face trial for war crimes and push for referendum amongst Tamils, besides retrieving the Katchatheevu Island ceded to Lanka to protect its fishermen from attacks.

Enacting the long-stuck Women’s Reservation Bill and bringing back black money are also on the party’s list.

On Monday, Jayalalithaa released the party’s candidates for the 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu and one in Puducherry. She said some of them would be withdrawn once the seat sharing agreement is reached with the two left parties.

On a day she celebrated her 66th birthday, Jayalalithaa’s party men cut a Parliament-shaped cake, reflecting her determination to aim for the country’s top post.

In the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, the AIADMK had won 9 seats in Tamil Nadu.