New Delhi, Dec 19 (NationPress) Lok Sabha's Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Friday pledged to initiate a countrywide protest against the Viksit Bharat - Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) bill, asserting that it was rushed through Parliament without sufficient examination and discussion.

Just a day earlier, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge vowed to spearhead a national movement against the government's “authoritarian stance” to pass the G RAM G bill, which aims to replace MGNREGA.

Gandhi labeled MGNREGA as the most effective poverty alleviation initiative and stated that he and his party would not allow the Modi government to dismantle the rural poor's last bastion of support.

“We will unite with workers, panchayats, and states to thwart this initiative and establish a nationwide coalition to ensure this legislation is retracted,” he declared in a powerful statement.

Taking offense at the “swift” passage of the G RAM G bill through both Houses, he accused the Modi government of dismantling two decades of MGNREGA in merely one day and questioned the “anti-state and anti-village” framework of the new scheme, designed to supplant the UPA-era Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Since its introduction in Parliament, the G RAM G bill has incited heated exchanges between government and opposition members, with the latter accusing the administration of erasing the legacy of the Father of the Nation. The bill was approved in the Lok Sabha on Thursday despite significant uproar from the Opposition and was subsequently ratified by the Rajya Sabha after a debate that extended until around 1 a.m. Friday.

Gandhi, unconvinced by the Centre’s assertion that G RAM G was an enhancement of MGNREGA, took to X on Friday to criticize the government in detail.

“VB–G RAM G is not a “revamp” of MGNREGA. It dismantles the rights-based, demand-driven guarantee and transforms it into a rationed scheme managed from Delhi. It is inherently anti-state and anti-village,” he remarked.

The Congress leader pointed out that by limiting work and creating additional barriers to access, the VB-G RAM G will only diminish the one instrument available to the rural poor.

“During COVID, we witnessed the significance of MGNREGA. When the economy came to a halt and livelihoods were jeopardized, it prevented millions from succumbing to hunger and debt,” he emphasized.

He further highlighted the benefits accrued to impoverished households, especially women, who have consistently been among the largest beneficiaries of MGNREGA.

He noted that women have contributed over half of the total person-days, year after year, and that it is they, alongside Dalits, Adivasis, landless workers, and the most marginalized OBC communities, who will suffer the most from these changes.

Additionally, he criticized the Modi government for disregarding the opposition’s concerns regarding the contentious bill, accusing the Centre of forcefully pushing it through the legislature.

“This law was expedited through Parliament without thorough scrutiny. The opposition's call to refer the bill to a Standing Committee was denied. A law that fundamentally alters the rural social contract and impacts millions of workers should never be rushed through without comprehensive committee evaluation, expert consultation, and public hearings,” he stated.