New Delhi, Dec 19: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday sharply criticised the newly passed VB-G RAM G Bill, calling it “anti-village” and alleging that the Modi government destroyed 20 years of MGNREGA in a single day.
In a post on X, Gandhi said the bill does not merely “revamp” MGNREGA but transforms it from a rights based, demand driven scheme into a rationed programme controlled from Delhi. “It is anti-state and anti-village by design,” he added.
The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha highlighted the achievements of MGNREGA, stating that the scheme gave rural workers bargaining power, reduced distress migration, improved wages and working conditions, and helped build rural infrastructure. Gandhi argued that the VB-G RAM G Bill weakens this leverage by capping work and creating more avenues to deny employment.
“We saw what MGNREGA meant during Covid. When the economy shut down and livelihoods collapsed, it kept crores from falling into hunger and debt,” he said. Gandhi also emphasised that women, Dalits, Adivasis, landless workers, and marginalized OBC communities are most likely to be affected when employment schemes are rationed.
Criticising the parliamentary process, Gandhi said the law was passed without proper scrutiny. “A law that rewires the rural social contract, affecting crores of workers, should never be rammed through without serious committee review, expert consultation, and public hearings,” he said. He accused the government of centralising power and weakening the leverage of rural India while presenting the move as a reform.
He reaffirmed Congress’s commitment to opposing the law: “We will stand with workers, panchayats, and states to defeat this move and build a nationwide front to ensure this law is withdrawn.”
The VB-G RAM G Bill, or Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, was passed by the Rajya Sabha on Thursday night with a voice vote, hours after Lok Sabha cleared it amid strong opposition protests over the removal of Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the scheme and concerns over the financial burden shifted onto states.