Technology and Rights: An Analysis of the BJP and Congress Manifestos

In an article published in The Hindu, authors argue persuasively for people-centric approach to development, acknowledging the significant role that technology can play. However, they caution against making technology the sole focus of the state’s endeavours. The state’s goal to reduce socio-economic inequality, rural distress, and ensuring livelihood security through targeted welfare schemes runs the risk of being counterproductive with an aggressive push for technological interventions, they say.

We must therefore examine the focus laid on techno-solutionism approach in the political manifestos of the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) and the Congress. The article is based on secondary data accessed from the poll manifestos of the two parties available online. The analysis of the poll manifestos of the BJP and Congress has been done using NVivo, a qualitative analysis software. The auto-code feature of the NVivo has been deployed to identify focus areas on technology and rights in the poll manifestos of the two parties. 

BJP 

The BJP in its manifesto, ‘Sankalp Patra’, has a dedicated chapter on technology titled ‘Modi ki Guarantee for Technology and Innovations’. The party promises to leverage technology for water management and reduce its wastage. Fishermen would be supported through different technological interventions including the use of drones. The BJP further promises to encourage technology-driven startups to initiate commercially viable and sustainable forest-based enterprises. The party also aims to deploy Bhashini, an artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled language translation system, for preservation and facilitation of translation of languages of linguistic minorities. Internationally, the party’s goal is to further promote its Bharat’s Digital Public Infrastructure for service delivery in other countries.

Illustration: Pariplab Chakraborty

Advertisement

From upgrading telecom infrastructure using affordable 5G and innovative 6G technology, and strengthening Graphene-based technology programmes to enhancing the capabilities of armed forces to digitising urban land records to taking a global leap in the quantum technology by operationalising National Quantum Mission, the BJP in its manifesto has been making an aggressive push for tech-led development.

While promising to emerge as a leading space power, the party also aims to ensure tech sovereignty. Addressing the issue of corruption, simplification of direct and indirect taxation, quality education and promotion of sports start-ups, the saffron party has outlined its intention to make use of technology in every possible domain. It is also for using technology in ensuring citizen participation through various platforms like MyGov and the preservation and protection of “ancient Bharatiya civilisation”.

Congress

Unlike the BJP, Congress has a tokenistic approach with respect to using technology in its ‘Nyay Patra’. The party in its manifesto has identified challenges of the future including the changes in the global economy, advanced technology such as AI, robotics and machine learning, and climate change.

It promises use of technology for wealth creation, encouragement and support of the use of AI, robotics, etc., and also to ensure that there are more job opportunities in sectors that use conventional technology, mobilisation of capital expenditure and modern technology to create infrastructure of world class quality. 

Tech-based approach versus rights-based agenda

A word frequency query results (with minimum word length of six and total 500 words as search criteria) of the political manifestos of the BJP and the Congress show higher weighted percentage of 0.34% for the word “technology” by the saffron party compared to 0.04% in the Congress party. This indicates more spotlight by the BJP on tech-based service delivery as compared to the Congress. However, a higher weighted percentage of 0.27% for the word “rights” is found in the poll manifesto of the Congress. Due to word count less than three, the single instance of the word “rights” in the BJP’s manifesto is not captured here, and since here only top 20 words are selected, the weighted percentage for the word “technology” in the Congress manifesto is not shown in the table below.   

A word frequency table of top 20 words in the BJP’s and Congress’ manifestos

Created by author using NVivo

As indicated here, the BJP in its manifesto has laid out a grand strategy on how it is going to leverage cutting-edge technology in various domains and for the delivery of public services. However, when it comes to a rights-based approach, BJP in its manifesto has just promised to “draw a Uniform Civil Code for gender equality and protection of rights of all women”. This is the only instance where the word ‘rights’ appears in its manifesto.  

The Congress in its manifesto lays focus on a rights-based approach for development. The party says it will give priority to intellectual property rights; enhance the authority of the Gram Sabha in the administration of the forest rights law, among other laws; repair India’s international image that has been damaged by the present government’s intolerance of dissent and suppression of human rights. It further says, a national mission will be set up for effective implementation of the Forest Rights Act, 2006. The party promises to respect and uphold the fundamental right to practice one’s faith and the rights guaranteed to religious minorities under the Constitution, enforce Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, and remove the discrimination against women and uphold and advance the rights of women. 

The Congress party will appoint an Adhikar Maitri in every Panchayats to serve as a paralegal to educate women and assist them in the enforcement of their legal rights. It aims to make law to specify and protect the rights of gig workers and unorganised workers and enhance their social security, and laws to regulate the employment of domestic help and migrant workers, and ensure their basic legal rights. If it returns to power, the party will amend or delete provisions in new laws such as the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 which give unbridled powers of censorship to the government. 

Though BJP makes an aggressive push for the use of technology, its manifesto remains silent on how the rights and privacy aspect would be addressed. It does not even mention how the enacted data protection law will be leveraged to ensure privacy and security issues. It is also surprising to find that the central government’s flagship scheme for tech-led urban transformation, Smart Cities Mission, has found no mention in the party manifesto, raising doubts over the launch of the Smart Cities Mission 2.0. 

Also read: Congress Manifesto’s Commitment to Social Justice Will Put Other Parties on the Defensive

The manifesto of the Congress, though in terms of percentage is very low in the use of technology, promises a rights-based agenda for governance.

The analysis of the manifestos of the BJP and Congress shows that the Modi-led party gives much spotlight on techno-solutionism approach while the rights-based approach gets a priority in the case of the Congress. Emphasising the use of technology does not necessarily cast doubt on the BJP’s commitment to a people-centric approach. However, it’s essential to guard against an overreliance on technological solutionism or technological determinism, which may inadvertently obstruct the intended beneficiaries of laws and schemes. Balancing technological advancements with the genuine needs and concerns of the people should remain a priority to ensure the effective implementation of policies and programmes.

Dr Deepak Kumar is an urban policy and governance researcher at the Asian Development Research Institute. Views expressed here are personal.