New Delhi [India], December 27 : The Congress on Saturday announced a nationwide "Save Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)" campaign beginning January 5 after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, escalating its political battle with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the Centre's decision to replace the MGNREGA with the Viksit Bharat - Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025.
On December 21, President Droupadi Murmu gave assent to the VB-G RAM G Bill, 2025, which replaced MGNREGA. The Act enhances the statutory wage employment guarantee to 125 days per financial year for rural households. It seeks to advance empowerment, inclusive growth, convergence of development initiatives and saturation-based delivery, thereby strengthening the foundation for a prosperous, resilient and self-reliant Rural Bharat.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said the campaign would be launched in response to what he termed the Centre's attempt to weaken a landmark welfare law that guarantees employment to rural households.
Speaking to media representatives at Karnataka Bhavan in New Delhi, the Chief Minister expressed concern over the central government's decision and emphasised the importance of preserving the original scheme named after Mahatma Gandhi.
In a post on X, Siddaramaiah wrote, "At today's Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting at Indira Bhawan, New Delhi, we unanimously condemned the Union Government's anti-federal and anti-national move to weaken the very spirit of the Employment Guarantee Programme by changing the name and structure of MGNREGA."
He also mentioned that the meeting focused on upcoming poll preparations, developing strategies to prevent vote theft, and addressing the country's significant challenges.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge echoed similar sentiments, announcing that the party would launch a nationwide movement from January 5 to protect the scheme. Speaking to the media, Kharge said that party leaders took an oath during the meeting to protect MNREGA and oppose any attempt to weaken or alter the scheme.
"In the meeting, we took an oath. We decided to launch a massive movement across the country, making the MNREGA scheme the central point. Indian National Congress party, taking a leading role, will launch the MNREGA Save Campaign from January 5th," Kharge said.
Emphasising the importance of the scheme, the Congress chief said MNREGA is not merely a welfare programme but a constitutional right. "We will protect the MNREGA at all costs. MNREGA is not just a scheme but a right to work guaranteed by the Constitution of India. We also pledge to democratically oppose every conspiracy to remove Gandhiji's name from MNREGA," he added.
During his opening remarks at the CWC meeting, Kharge flagged the issue of "voter deletion" during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in nine states and three UTs.
Kharge, backing Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's campaigns against alleged "vote theft", said that SIR is a "conspiracy to restrict" democratic rights.
"Today, SIR is a matter of serious concern. It is a well-thought-out conspiracy to restrict democratic rights. Rahulji has repeatedly presented evidence of 'vote theft' before the country with facts and examples
"The collusion between the BJP and the Election Commission is well-known to all. Therefore, we must ensure that the names of our voters are not deleted," he added.
Kharge called party members to ensure that the votes of marginalised communities are not removed or transferred to other booths. "We must ensure that the names of people from poor and vulnerable sections, especially Dalits, Adivasis, Extremely Backward Classes, and minorities, are not removed from the voter list. Nor should they be TRANSFERRED to other booths. For this, our BLAs will have to go door-to-door with the voter list," he said.
The Congress chief also urged party workers to prepare for upcoming Assembly elections in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry, and accused the BJP of misusing central agencies like the ED, IT and CBI to target opposition leaders.
"Over the past 11 years, the country has seen how agencies like ED, IT, and CBI are being misused. The BJP and Sangh Parivar are engaged in tarnishing the image of our leaders on the NATIONAL HERALD issue. We are fighting a legal battle. 'Satyameva Jayate'--this is what Rahulji always says, and we will emerge victorious," he said.
He also raised concerns over violence against Hindu minorities in Bangladesh and incidents of disruption during Christmas celebrations in parts of the country.
"The attacks on Hindu minorities in Bangladesh in recent months have worried the entire country. We strongly condemn this. One more thing is on my mind. Two days ago, on the occasion of Christmas, people from the BJP, RSS, and related organisations in many areas worked to disrupt brotherhood and harmony. This has tarnished our image in the eyes of the world," he said.
Senior leader Salman Khurshid said the party had released a detailed resolution on MGNREGA and reiterated its opposition to the new law. He also said discussions were held on the situation in Bangladesh, with a formal resolution being prepared.
Congress MP K Suresh said the meeting focused entirely on opposing the replacement of MGNREGA. "Today's Working Committee meeting mainly discussed the Union government's move to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme with a new program called VB-G RAM G. The committee decided to oppose this move strongly and to provide leadership for a nationwide protest against it. The entire discussion in the meeting was centred on this single issue," Suresh told reporters.
Meanwhile, the BJP hit back sharply. Party spokesperson CR Kesavan termed the Congress an "insecure Nehru Congress" and questioned whether the party would take responsibility for its recent electoral setbacks, including the Bihar elections.
"The insecure Nehru Congress has called its first meeting after losing the Bihar election. Will the CWC dare to own its mistakes and blame Rahul Gandhi for the defeat, or for their failed vote-stealing campaign? Or will they attempt to whitewash Rahul Gandhi's failures?" asked Kesavan.
The Congress Working Committee meeting was chaired by Kharge and attended by senior leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, KC Venugopal, Salman Khurshid, Harish Rawat, Rajeev Shukla, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, and Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah.
Siddaramaiah's presence at the meeting comes amid speculation over a possible leadership change in Karnataka, with Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar reiterating his claim to a reported 2.5-year leadership-sharing agreement reached after the 2023 Assembly elections. Shivakumar was not invited to the CWC meeting. "I am aware that two, three CMs have been invited. But the DCM has not been invited," he had said earlier.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor also attended the meeting despite recent reports of strained ties with the party leadership. Tharoor has recently made headlines for skipping some party events and for praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address at the Ramnath Goenka Lecture.