Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge slammed the Centre for tinkering with MGNREGA, accusing them of undermining the 'right to work'. He announced the party will launch a nationwide agitation against the move, calling it an attack on the poor.
Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition and Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday accused the Centre of undermining the right to work by attempting to tinker with the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), asserting that the party would fight on the streets across the nation.
The senior Congress leader highlighted that the issue "goes beyond a mere renaming" exercise and there "will be a movement" against it. Speaking to reporters, Kharge said, "This is not about renaming MGNREGA, this is about the right to work. They are snatching away the right that was given by us. They are snatching away the rights of people. This is a big issue, and it is very difficult for the poor." The Congress President said the party would launch a nationwide agitation against what he termed as an attack on the rights of the poor. "So, we will fight for this till the end. We will fight on the streets and in every district of every state there will be a movement," he added.
Opposition Protests in Parliament
Congress leader Digvijaya Singh said, "This is a decision taken out of an inferiority complex. This is an insult to Mahatma Gandhi."
Congress leaders and several Opposition MPs on Thursday held a protest from the Gandhi statue to the Makkar Dawar in the Parliament premises over the renaming of the MNREGA to the VB G RAM G.The MPs conducted a march holding posters bearing the slogan "Will not tolerate the disrespect of Mahatma Gandhi" (Mahatma Gandhi ka apman nahi sahenge nahi sahenge).
Opposition MPs also raised the issue of atrocities against minorities and protested on the Parliament premises.
Heated Debate in Lok Sabha
On Wednesday, the Lok Sabha saw a nearly 14-hour debate over the Viksit Bharat-G RAM G (Gramin Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission) Amendment Bill, with the opposition demanding that the proposed legislation be referred to the Standing Committee, even as the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) strongly defended the Bill, terming it a decisive step towards achieving a Viksit Bharat by 2047.
Congress Demands Deeper Scrutiny
Several Congress MPs strongly objected to the renaming of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) and changes in the funding pattern. Congress MP K Suresh urged the House to send the Bill to the Standing Committee, describing it as "important" and warranting deeper scrutiny. He said the length and intensity of the debate itself underlined the significance of the legislation."This is an important bill, which is why the House has discussed it for so long. More than 98 members from both sides participated in this debate. The opposition party strongly opposes this bill. The INDIA bloc demanded that this bill be sent to the Standing Committee," Suresh said, adding that the House would take up a discussion on air pollution today.
Congress MP Vamsi Krishna Gaddam said the government's intentions were becoming clear through what he termed "unnecessary decisions." "All of us in the country love Mahatma Gandhi, except the BJP. It is sad to know that the name of Mahatma Gandhi is being removed from this scheme, and 40 per cent of the funding will now be done by the state government, as against 100 per cent central funding earlier," he said, alleging that the BJP and RSS ideology was against the interests of the people.
Congress MP Praniti Shinde accused the government of rushing the legislation. "The discussion is still going on, and the discussion time has also been extended. They are probably in a hurry to pass this bill. Congress is firmly opposed to the name change. They want to erase Mahatma Gandhi's name and rewrite the country's history. This bill has been weakened," she said.(ANI)
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)