“MGNREGA Was Bulldozed”: Sonia Gandhi Slams VB-G RAM (Gramin) Law, Calls It an Attack on Rural Rights

Delhi: A day after Parliament cleared the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, replacing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi launched a sharp political offensive against the Centre, accusing it of dismantling a landmark welfare law without debate or consensus.

In a video message released on Saturday, Gandhi alleged that the government had not merely renamed the scheme but fundamentally altered its character. She described the move as “bulldozing” a law that provided a legal right to employment for rural families and strengthened grassroots democracy through empowered gram panchayats.

Recalling the passage of MGNREGA two decades ago, Gandhi said the legislation was enacted during the Manmohan Singh-led UPA government with wide political agreement. According to her, the scheme had curbed distress migration, guaranteed livelihood security to the rural poor, and advanced Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of Gram Swaraj.

Gandhi accused the Modi government of pushing the new law through Parliament without meaningful consultation, stakeholder engagement, or discussion with the opposition. She claimed that the changes were rushed through despite their far-reaching impact on farmers, labourers, and landless households across the country.

Terming the new legislation a “black law,” the senior Congress leader said her party would resist any attempt to weaken employment guarantees in rural India. She asserted that lakhs of Congress workers would stand with rural families in opposing what she called an erosion of hard-earned social protections.

The VB-G RAM (Gramin) Bill was passed by the Rajya Sabha through a voice vote on Friday, following its clearance in the Lok Sabha a day earlier. Opposition parties staged a walkout in the Upper House, demanding that the Bill be referred to a Select Committee and accusing the Centre of shifting financial responsibility to states.

The government, however, has defended the legislation, saying it expands rural employment by increasing guaranteed workdays per household and improves the scheme’s efficiency. Union ministers have also rejected the opposition’s criticism over the removal of Mahatma Gandhi’s name, arguing that the new framework strengthens welfare delivery.