Senior Congress leader and former Member of Parliament, BK Hariprasad, launched a sharp critique against the Narendra Modi-led central government on Monday. He alleged that the recent move to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) with a new bill is not merely a rebranding exercise but a systematic effort to dilute the fundamental right to employment for the rural poor.
From a Right to a Diluted Scheme?
Hariprasad emphasized that the MNREGA, enacted in 2005 under the previous Congress-led UPA government, was a landmark legislation that provided a legal guarantee of 100 days of wage employment per year to adult members of rural households. He stated that the scheme was instrumental in providing jobs to an estimated 12 crore rural poor across the country.
The new legislation, titled the Vikasit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill (VB G RAM G Bill) 2025, was passed in the Lok Sabha on Thursday. The Congress leader argued that the name change itself appears to be a "conspiracy to humiliate Mahatma Gandhi", whose name was central to the original act.
Structural Changes and Funding Shift
Beyond the nomenclature, Hariprasad highlighted significant structural alterations that he claims will weaken the scheme. Under MNREGA, the central government bore 90% of the financial burden, covering 100% of the wages and 75% of the material costs. The proposed new framework, according to him, shifts this balance.
The Modi government is now proposing to fund only 60% of the wages, forcing state governments to cover the remaining 40%. This change, Hariprasad warned, could place an immense fiscal strain on states and potentially lead to delays or reductions in payments to workers.
He also pointed out a controversial operational clause: the scheme would reportedly be non-operational during the harvesting season. This, he contended, removes a crucial safety net for agricultural laborers when they might still need alternative employment.
Centralization of Control and Planned Protests
Another key accusation leveled by the Congress leader pertains to the decentralization of the scheme's implementation. He stated that the Congress-led UPA government had empowered local panchayats (village councils) to implement MNREGA, ensuring grassroots-level management. The new bill, he alleged, takes this authority away, indicating the Centre's desire to "control the whole scheme."
In response to these changes, the Congress party is preparing a strategic opposition. Hariprasad revealed that the Congress Working Committee (CWC), the party's highest decision-making body, will convene a meeting on December 27 to finalize a plan of action. The party intends to protest both the name change and the structural overhaul of the employment guarantee scheme.
He further stated that the Congress will take this issue, along with its grievances concerning the "National Herald false allegations," to every district and village in the state, mobilizing public opinion against the government's decisions.
