"Mahatma not from my family, but...": Priyanka Gandhi leads G Ram G protest

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, December 16, 2025: Mounting a strong protest against the Centre’s new Bill to replace the rural job guarantee scheme MGNREGS, senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said the new Bill weakens the law and should be withdrawn. The Wayanad MP also said no law should be passed based on someone’s "whim, ambition and prejudice". The Congress staged a protest on the Parliament premises, holding up photographs of Mahatma Gandhi, after whom the MGNREGA is named.   

In the Lok Sabha today, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan sought permission to introduce the Viksit Bharat Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025, also known G Ram G Bill. This Bill aims to replace the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act or MGNREGA.

Priyanka Gandhi opposed the Bill under Rule 72(1) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha. "I register my strong objection, MGNREGA has been successful in providing livelihood to rural India and strengthening the rural economy for 20 years. This is such a revolutionary law that when it was brought, all political parties in parliament supported it. This provides 100 days of employment in a year to the poorest of the poor in this country," she said.

MGNREGA was brought in 2005 by the then UPA government and guarantees 100 days of paid work in a year to every individual in rural areas. The scheme has been hailed as a game-changer for the rural economy over the past two decades.

Priyanka Gandhi said that MGNREGA provides work based on demand, and the Centre’s funding for the scheme is also demand-based. The new Bill, however, allows the Centre to decide the fund allocation beforehand. She also said that while MGNREGA empowered Gram Sabhas to assess the demand for work as per the situation on the ground, the new Bill weakens the role of Gram Sabhas. "The right to employment is being weakened, and this is against our Constitution." 

Priyanka Gandhi pointed out that the Centre’s contribution to the scheme’s funding has been reduced to 60 per cent for most states. "This will impact states’ economy when they are already waiting for GST dues from the Centre," she said.

The Congress leader also questioned the "craze" to change the name of every scheme and pointed out that the Centre incurs a cost every time such steps are taken. "Bill should not be passed in haste without discussion and without taking the advice of this House. This Bill must be withdrawn, and the government should bring a new Bill," she said. When someone from the treasury benches made a "family" remark, she replied, "Mahatma Gandhi is not from my family, but he is like my family member and the entire country feels the same way," she said.

Besides Priyanka Gandhi, several opposition leaders flagged provisions of the new Bill, particularly the shift from demand-based to normative funding and the reduction of the Centre’s contribution. Her party colleague Shashi Tharoor, too, opposed the Bill, saying it is "immoral" to remove Mahatma Gandhi’s name.  
Government sources argue that the Bill is aligned with its Viksit Bharat 2047 vision. Countering the criticism of the shift to normative funding from a demand-based model, a source said that normative funding aligns the scheme with the budgeting model used for most Government of India schemes. "A demand-based model leads to unpredictable allocations and mismatched budgeting. Normative funding uses objective parameters, ensuring predictable, rational planning while still guaranteeing that every eligible worker receives employment or unemployment allowance," the source says. 

BJP leader and former Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the Congress’s problem is that the Bill is named after Lord Ram. "They cannot tolerate the inclusion of Lord Ram’s name, which is why they are creating such a fuss."