New Delhi, April 27 (IANS): Former Chhattisgarh Deputy CM and veteran Congress leader T.S. Singh Deo has opened up on why the Old Pension Scheme (OPS) didn’t find a place in the Congress manifesto for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, as he slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for making its manifesto a ‘person-centric’ poll document.

In an exclusive conversation with IANS, Singh Deo said the Congress governments in Chhattisgarh and Himachal Pradesh brought back OPS because of its multiple benefits.

“If OPS doesn’t figure in Congress' manifesto for the Parliamentary elections, it doesn’t mean we have given up on its benefits,” he told IANS.

“The panelists analysing the pros and cons of OPS are renowned economists, including P. Chidambaram, Raghu Ram Rajan, and others. It was decided that OPS will be brought in the central manifesto after due deliberations,” he added.

But the current governance structure is not designed to suit the scheme, Singh Deo said, adding that it became untenable to support the OPS and its huge expenses, hence it paved the way for a new pension scheme.

“The pensioners initially felt good but after they saw that the new scheme lacked some of the benefits like pension to the family after five years of pensioner's demise, they raised opposition to it,” he said.

On Chhattisgarh going the OPS way, he said it was done after consultations and deliberations.

Singh Deo also slammed the BJP manifesto for 2024 polls, calling it 'disappointing', not just for him, but also for the common people.

“The BJP manifesto has nothing new in it, rather it has become Modi manifesto. It keeps on bragging about 'Modi ki Guarantee' again and again and is deprived of a clear vision for the nation. The party which boasts of being the biggest party in the world has been reduced to a one-man show,” Singh Deo said.

He said the country is increasingly moving towards a dictatorial style of governance and this will set a dangerous precedent for the nation.

“The gross misuse of agencies like the ED has forced warring parties to come together and join forces against the BJP,” he added.

Comparing the BJP and the Congress manifestos, Singh Deo claimed the BJP's poll promises are on similar lines, while the grand old party has brought a fresh lease of energy by proposing Rs 1 lakh assistance for women.

“A Congress government will ensure that every family gets a minimum income of Rs 1 lakh. The woman member of the household will get Rs 1 lakh financial assistance and this will also mark an important step towards women's empowerment,” he said.

He added that the Congress manifesto talks about creating an equitable society where every family will get basic assistance to live and contribute to the country’s growth.