BJP vs Congress: Which Manifesto Will Win the LGBTQ Vote?

Both the BJP and the Congress have included LGBTQ rights in their manifestos. But is this enough?

(Photo: The Quint)

Video Editor: Kunal Mehra

Both the BJP and the Congress have included LGBTQ rights in their manifestos. Now, the BJP’s points are a bit more vague and the Congress’ points are a bit more detailed and direct. But these are the two biggest parties in this year’s elections, and same-sex relations were only made legal last year in September 2018. But is this enough? Is this exciting? Is this surprising?

The BJP manifesto has failed to impress some from the community.

“The BJP manifesto is just lip service to transgender rights. Later you can’t hold them accountable because they haven’t really promised anything.” 

Lameeya Parween, PhD Research Scholar

The Congress manifesto fared better in inclusion of LGBTQ concerns, with more details and concrete action plans.

“They have specifically promised that they will withdraw the pending transgender bill. The manifesto represents a Congress attempt at reinventing itself after falling to an all-time low in the last elections.”

Shume Banerjee, Lawyer

But in a surprise twist, it is the Communist Party of India (Marxist) that has really understood the concerns of the queer people in the country.

“I was surprised to see how detailed it is, and how they (Communist Party of India, Marxist) have actually taken note of real issues.”

Akriti Niti Guha, Event Promoter