Chandigarh, January 10
The General Secretary of
All India Congress Committee, former Union Minister, and Sirsa Lok Sabha MP Kumari Selja accused the Narendra Modi-led Central Government of deliberately weakening MGNREGA. She said the BJP government is systematically conspiring to dismantle the constitutional and legal rights granted to the poor during the Congress regime. Kumari Selja said the MGNREGA has not merely been renamed; rather, its very spirit especially the spirit of Mahatma Gandhi is being destroyed, something the Congress will never tolerate at any cost.
MP Selja was addressing journalists at the Congress Bhawan in Sirsa on Tuesday. Earlier, she also addressed a press conference at Hotel Ganga in Fatehabad, where she raised several serious questions regarding the Centre’s intentions toward MGNREGA. Kumari Selja said through MGNREGA, the Congress had provided the poor with a legal guarantee of minimum wages, but the Central Government is now trying to dismantle this guarantee by altering rules and procedures. This, she said, is a clear reflection of an anti-poor mindset. She emphasized that weakening MGNREGA would directly impact rural poor families, laborers, and women, something the Congress will never accept. Kumari Selja informed that the Congress is conducting a nationwide agitation against the Centre’s anti-MGNREGA decisions, and as part of this movement, strong protests will be held at all district headquarters across Haryana on January 11.
Responding to a question, Kumari Selja said that whenever elections are held in any state, central agencies such as the ED and CBI suddenly become active. Money is deposited into people’s accounts, and once elections are over, everything is conveniently forgotten. She said in Haryana, the Lado Laxmi Scheme is being weakened, MGNREGA is being diluted, and farmers have still not received compensation, clearly exposing the intentions of the BJP government. Raising the issue of the Fatehabad–Sirsa railway line, she said the government announcements regarding this project are completely hollow, as no concrete work has taken place on the ground so far. She said that if the Haryana government is claiming a budget allocation of ₹1,400 crore for this project, it is misleading. She assured that she would once again raise this issue forcefully in Parliament.
Daughters and sisters are not safe in Haryana
Targeting the Haryana government, Kumari Selja said that corruption in the state has crossed all limits. Officials are unchecked, women and girls are unsafe, and the common people are struggling with basic problems. Despite tall claims of cleanliness drives, conditions in cities and villages are worsening, putting public health at serious risk.
Selja said instead of providing basic amenities, the BJP government is trying to divert public attention through superficial publicity. The Congress’s policy is clear to protect the rights of the poor, laborers, and farmers. By weakening MGNREGA, the Central Government is snatching away the rights of the poor and forcing them to beg once again, which the Congress will never allow to succeed. During the press conference at the Congress Bhawan in Sirsa, Kalanwali MLA Shishpal Keharwala, District President Santosh Beniwal, senior Congress leader Dr. K.V. Singh, Women’s District President Krishna Phogat, Rajkumar Sharma, Naveen Kedia, Rajesh Chadiwal, Sandeep Nehra, and a large number of Congress workers were present. At the press conference held at Hotel Ganga in Fatehabad, MLA Balwan Singh Daulatpuria, District President Arvind Sharma, former MLA Prahlad Singh Gillakheda, Jaipal Singh Lali, Mangat Ram Lalwas, Mahesh Sharma, and several other senior leaders were also present.
