Bihar Assembly Elections 2025 | CPI(ML)L makes slew of promises in poll manifesto

New Delhi: Review of prohibition law and implementation of a “fair and just” policy, regulation of microfinance exploitation, loan waivers for various sections, 65 per cent quota regime, land for landless and ban on eviction of poor before proper rehabilitation are among a slew of commitments made in the CPI(ML)L manifesto for Bihar elections, which the party said will align with the promises of I.N.D.I.A bloc.

Unemployed youths are promised Rs 3,000 per month, immediate recruitment to all vacant posts, a monthly honorarium of Rs 2,500 and a monthly old-age pension of Rs 1,500 are also promised in the ‘Parivartan Sankalp Patra’, which came ahead of the I.N.D.I.A bloc’s joint manifesto that is likely to echo most of these promises.

Establishment of a uniform education system, regulation of private education, strict law against paper leaks and an increase in scholarship amounts are part of the manifesto that was released in Bhojpur, the CPI(ML)L’s founding place in Bihar, after a 10-km ‘padayatra’ from Ekwari village to the banks of River Sone in the presence of party General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya.

Spread over ten heads and 41 points, the CPI(ML)L said the manifesto is a “guarantee for building a Bihar based on justice, equality, and democracy” and in the Assembly, its MLAs will “represent public interest, the people’s voice, and the strength of people’s movements, and will make every possible effort and struggle to establish transparency and accountability in governance”.

One of the prominent promises under the ‘Good Governance and Protection of the Constitution’ section is the “review of the prohibition law and implementation of a fair and just policy”. The Nitish Kumar government had implemented total prohibition, which has led to revenue loss for the government, and there were criticisms that it has led to the spread of illicit liquor in the state.

In a politically significant announcement, it has promised to ensure that no law that violates the Constitution or undermines the federal structure will be allowed to be implemented in Bihar. The party did not provide any examples but alliance leader Tejashwi Yadav on Sunday said they would throw out the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2005 if I.N.D.I.A comes to power.

With poor and the deprived suffering due to indebtedness, the party has also promised loan waivers and interest-free loans for various sections. Farmers, rural labourers and poor women will get loan waivers while loans up to Rs two lakh for certain sections will also be waived.

Targeting women, it has promised Rs 2,500 monthly honorarium for all women, interest-free loans for self-employment and guaranteed maternity leave, strict prevention of violence, harassment, and honor crimes and a women’s college in every block and free education for all girl students and women’s college in every block and free education for all girl students. Regulation of microfinance exploitation is another agenda on top for the CPI(ML)L.

Every landless and homeless family will receive 5 decimals of land in rural areas and 3 decimals in urban areas, along with a permanent house and implementation of the Bandopadhyay Commission’s recommendations to distribute 21 lakh acres of land have also been promised in the manifesto.

For the agriculture sector, the CPI(ML)L has promised government procurement and fair prices for all crops, free electricity, and promotion of agriculture-based industries and enterprises among others.

Following the developments after the caste survey, the manifesto promises 65 per cent reservation for the deprived communities and that efforts will be taken to include it in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution to give it protection from judicial scrutiny.

“The time has come to free the state from the BJP–JDU government, which has been in power for the past two decades. What has developed in Bihar in the name of progress is destruction; in the name of good governance, we have witnessed crime, loot, and chaos. Education and healthcare have collapsed. Poverty remains a vicious cycle. ,” the manifesto said.

“The state continues to suffer from historical backwardness and migration. Violence against Dalits, minorities, and women persists. Unemployment is at its peak — this is the grim reality of today’s Bihar. Students and youth are migrating in search of jobs and a future; farmers are crushed under debt and high costs; women are trapped in the dual crisis of debt and insecurity. It is now clear that this government has pushed Bihar towards ruin,” it said.