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New Delhi: Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Saturday (December 20, 2025) strongly criticised the Modi government over the proposed Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill (VB-G RAM G), calling it an “attack” on the livelihoods of crores of farmers, labourers, and landless rural poor. She vowed to fight what she termed a “black law”.
In a video message released by the Indian National Congress, Ms. Gandhi alleged that the new legislation was introduced to “bulldoze” the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) without discussion or consultation.
Recalling the passage of MGNREGA nearly two decades ago, she said the law was adopted unanimously in Parliament through consensus. In contrast, she accused the government of pushing the new Bill through Parliament during the Winter Session despite widespread objections from Opposition parties.
“MGNREGA became a vital source of livelihood, especially for the underprivileged, exploited, poor and extremely poor sections of society,” Ms. Gandhi said. She described the scheme as a key step toward fulfilling Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of Gram Swaraj, adding that it reduced distress migration, guaranteed a legal right to employment, and strengthened local self-governance through panchayats.
“It is deeply unfortunate that the government has now bulldozed MGNREGA,” she said, alleging that Mahatma Gandhi’s name was removed from the scheme and its structure altered arbitrarily. Ms. Gandhi further accused the Narendra Modi-led government of systematically weakening the employment guarantee programme over the past 11 years.
She pointed out that MGNREGA had served as a “lifeline” for millions during the COVID-19 pandemic, yet the Centre continued to undermine it by ignoring the needs of unemployed and deprived rural populations.
Under the proposed law, Ms. Gandhi warned, decisions on who gets employment, where work will be provided, and how benefits can be accessed would be centralised in Delhi, distancing the scheme from local realities and grassroots needs.
Emphasising Congress’s role in enacting MGNREGA, she said the programme was never a partisan initiative but one rooted in national and public interest. “By weakening this law, the Modi government has attacked the interests of crores of farmers, labourers and landless rural poor,” she said, adding that the party was fully prepared to resist the move.
Ms. Gandhi assured that Congress leaders and lakhs of party workers across the country would stand united in opposing the Bill.
