The Congress on Thursday escalated its opposition to the Centre’s proposed rural employment legislation, with party president and Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge accusing the government of attempting to strip people of their basic rights. He alleged that the move to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) with the new VB-G RAM-G Bill was not a mere change in nomenclature but a direct assault on the right to work, which he said would disproportionately affect the poorest sections of society.
Kharge said the Congress would resist the proposal through every possible democratic means, both inside Parliament and outside.
Kharge Calls It an Attack on the Right to Work
Reacting strongly to the government’s move, Kharge said the Centre was “snatching away the rights of people” by seeking to replace a rights-based employment guarantee with what the Congress views as a discretionary welfare framework. Emphasising that MGNREGA is rooted in the constitutional promise of dignity and livelihood, he warned that the poor would bear the brunt of the change.
He declared that the party would fight “till the end,” making it clear that the Congress would take its resistance beyond parliamentary debates to mass protests across the country, with demonstrations planned in every district.
Nationwide Protests Planned Across Districts
The Congress announced nationwide demonstrations on Wednesday, describing the proposed rural employment law as a “BJP-RSS conspiracy” aimed at dismantling a landmark welfare programme and weakening Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy. The party has framed the issue as both an economic and ideological battle, arguing that the removal of Gandhi’s name reflects a deeper attempt to erase the values associated with social justice and labour rights.
In a letter to state Congress presidents, party general secretary K. C. Venugopal called for district-level protests featuring portraits of Mahatma Gandhi. He said this symbolism was meant to highlight resistance to what the party sees as the erasure of Gandhi’s name and principles from a scheme that has supported crores of rural workers.
Venugopal warned that the proposed legislation would impact millions of MGNREGA beneficiaries and represented a shift away from rights-based welfare towards a charity model controlled by the Centre.
Opposition Uproar In Parliament
Tensions flared in Parliament when Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan introduced the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025, in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. Opposition members, particularly from the Congress, raised strong objections, arguing that the Bill undermines the legal guarantee of employment provided under MGNREGA.
Congress MPs also staged a protest within the Parliament complex, accusing the government of bypassing meaningful consultation and attempting to push through a far-reaching change with serious social consequences.
