The political landscape in Jharkhand is set for a clash over a new central employment law, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Congress gearing up for opposing public campaigns. The state unit of the BJP has announced a comprehensive three-day statewide drive to educate citizens about the recently passed Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, commonly referred to as the VB-G RAM G Act.
BJP's Awareness Drive: Countering 'Misinformation'
The BJP's initiative is scheduled to run from January 8 to January 10. State executive president Aditya Sahu, addressing the media at the party office in Harmu, Ranchi, stated that party workers will directly engage with the public. The primary objective, according to Sahu, is to clarify the provisions of the new law and counter what the BJP claims is a campaign of misinformation being spread by the opposition Congress party.
Sahu, who is also a Rajya Sabha MP, launched a sharp critique of the previous Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) of 2005, which the new Act replaces. He alleged that MGNREGA had become a "hub of corruption and looting," specifically citing Jharkhand's record. He pointed to the case of a senior IAS officer being jailed for a Rs 24 crore scam in Khunti district and claimed that similar irregularities had been exposed in almost all districts of the state.
The New Act: Promises of Transparency and More Employment
The BJP leader positioned the VB-G RAM G Act as a necessary reform. He described it as a "developed and expanded model" of the two-decade-old MGNREGA, designed to realize the vision of a developed India (Viksit Bharat) by 2047. Sahu asserted that the new legislation ensures greater employment opportunities, enhanced transparency, better planning, and stronger accountability mechanisms compared to its predecessor.
In a pointed remark, Sahu suggested that the Congress's opposition stems from two factors: the closing of alleged corrupt avenues under the old scheme and the inclusion of the word 'Ram' in the Act's acronym (VB-G RAM G). "They are troubled because the paths of corruption and loot have been stopped... They are also troubled because the word 'Ram' is included in the Act," he claimed.
Congress Plans Statewide Protest on January 5
The BJP's announcement comes ahead of a planned protest by the Jharkhand Congress. The state Congress unit is set to demonstrate across Jharkhand against the VB-G RAM G Act on January 5. The party has criticized the central government for replacing MGNREGS without adequate consultation and consent from the states.
Reacting to the BJP's upcoming drive, state Congress spokesperson Rakesh Kumar Sinha accused the BJP-led NDA government of undermining Gandhian principles. "By replacing the MGNREGS, the BJP-led NDA govt is destroying the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi," Sinha stated. He further alleged that the new bill jeopardizes the guaranteed income security of the poor. To voice their condemnation, the Congress will organize a protest march from Bapu Vatika in Morabadi to Lok Bhavan in Ranchi on the specified date.
The stage is thus set for a direct political confrontation in Jharkhand, with both major parties preparing to take their arguments concerning rural employment and governance to the people in the first week of January.
