New Delhi: Congress MP Rahul Gandhi alleged that the decision to rename the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) was taken directly by the PMO, without consulting the Cabinet or Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan. Speaking on the Congress’s decision to launch a ‘Save MGNREGA movement’ from January 5, 2026, Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said, “As Kharge ji has said, we will protest against this. We will fight against it. And I am confident that the entire opposition will unite against this action.”
He told the media after the Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting, “MGNREGA was not just a scheme, but a rights-based concept. Ending this scheme is an attack on this concept.” Rahul Gandhi alleged that the central government’s move is an attack on the country’s federal structure and a centralization of power and financial system. He said, “This decision was taken without consulting the minister (Shivraj) and the Cabinet, and was taken directly by the PMO.” The Congress leader said, “A one-man show is going on, Modi ji does whatever he wants.” It is worth noting that Parliament approved the ‘Viksit Bharat-G Ram Ji Bill, 2025’ on December 18 amidst protests from the opposition. After receiving assent from President Draupadi Murmu, it has now become an act. It will now replace the 20-year-old MGNREGA. Rahul Gandhi said, “…This is an attack on the states of India because they are simply taking away the state’s money, the power to make decisions that belongs to the state. This is an attack on the infrastructure of those states because MGNREGA was used to build infrastructure… So this is a very big attack on the states, on the poor people of this country.”
He alleged that the purpose of weakening MGNREGA is to take money away from the poor and benefit big industrialists. He said, “This decision will cause immense harm to tribals, Dalits, OBCs, minorities, and the poor in the general category, while the entire benefit will go to billionaires.” Before the Congress Working Committee meeting, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi paid tribute to former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh by laying a wreath at his portrait in Indira Bhavan.
