Senior Congress leader and MP Dipender Hooda has launched a sharp critique against the central government, alleging a systematic dismantling of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) since the BJP-led NDA came to power in 2014. He termed the government's approach an "open declaration of war on rural livelihoods."
Allegations of Systematic Erosion
Speaking at a press conference in Hyderabad alongside Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) chief Mahesh Kumar Goud, Hooda accused the Centre of forcibly enacting legislation that weakens the world's largest employment guarantee scheme. He stated that the programme, initiated by the former United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government under Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, is being fundamentally transformed.
The Congress MP outlined several key areas where this erosion is manifesting. He pointed to consistent reductions in the scheme's budget, the withholding of statutory dues owed to state governments, and the arbitrary deletion of job cards from the system. A major point of contention is the mandatory linkage of wage payments to Aadhaar, which Hooda claims has led to the exclusion of nearly seven crore (70 million) workers from the safety net.
From Rights-Based Law to Capped Scheme
Hooda argued that these actions represent a dangerous shift in the philosophy of MGNREGA. The law was originally designed as a demand-driven, rights-based entitlement, guaranteeing work as a legal right. He contends the current government has turned it into a centrally-controlled scheme with arbitrary caps on expenditure and person-days.
"This transition constitutes a rollback of Article 21 of the Constitution, which guarantees the right to life and livelihood," Hooda asserted. He further rapped the Centre for what he called a financial sleight of hand: shifting a burden of approximately Rs 50,000 crore onto state governments while retaining absolute control over the programme's regulations and fund disbursal.
Congress Vows to Fight Back
Declaring that the Congress party will not stand idle, Hooda emphasized a multi-pronged resistance strategy. He vowed to oppose the policy on every available platform, including inside Parliament and through public demonstrations across the country. Congress leaders and workers have already held protests in various parts of Telangana against the Centre's moves on NREGS.
Hooda concluded by framing the issue as a larger battle for democratic values. He asserted that truth would ultimately prevail over political conspiracy and reaffirmed his party's dedication to safeguarding democracy, federalism, and constitutional institutions, which he believes are being undermined by the ruling dispensation.
