CM Siddaramaiah slams centre
Bengaluru, January 3:
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah strongly criticised the Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party government at the Centre, alleging that it has systematically weakened village-level governance and damaged the rural economy by diluting the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS).
Addressing a press conference at his Home Office Krishna, the Chief Minister said the Centre had introduced a new law by effectively withdrawing the existing MGNREGS framework without consulting state governments, reflecting a dictatorial attitude.
He said the UPA government under former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had empowered citizens through landmark legislations such as the Right to Employment, Right to Information, and Right to Education.
The Chief Minister stated that the new law was introduced in Parliament on December 17 and passed the very next day, without adequate discussion. Across the country, around 12.16 crore workers depend on NREGA, of whom 6.21 crore are women. About 17% belong to Scheduled Castes and 11% to Scheduled Tribes.
In Karnataka alone, there are 71.18 lakh NREGA workers, including 36.75 lakh women, accounting for 51.6% of the workforce.
The present central government is dismantling pro-people laws to benefit corporate interests, he said.
Under the earlier Act, employment was guaranteed locally, enabling rural asset creation and strengthening village economies. Workers had a legal right to demand employment for at least 100 days a year. The Chief Minister said these guarantees have now been removed.
The only achievement of the Central Government in the last 11 years has been changing the names of schemes. Nearly 30 pro-people schemes have either been renamed or rolled back by the Modi Government, he said.
The CM pointed out that under Section 5(1) of the new law, employment would be provided only in areas notified by the government, with no guarantee of work through gram panchayats. Wage employment would be unavailable for at least 60 days during peak agricultural seasons, and inflation-linked wage revision has been removed.
Further, the Centre has shifted the funding pattern from full central assistance to a 60:40 Centre-State ratio, imposing a heavy financial burden on states. This, he said, violates Articles 258 and 280 of the Constitution and undermines India’s federal structure.
“The powers of gram panchayats have been taken away, which is aginst the Constitution and the Federal system, he said.
The Chief Minister said that he had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 30 urging repeal of the new law, restoration of the MGNREGA Act, protection of women’s and Dalits’ employment rights, and revival of panchayat self-governance.
He warned that the new law would increase unemployment, reduce women’s participation in the workforce, intensify pressure on Dalit and tribal families, and lead to the collapse of rural livelihoods.
Panchayats will be reduced to mere implementing agencies and thereby will create contractor driven system, he said.
Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar, ministers Priyank Kharge, K. H. Muniyappa, Chaluvaraya Swamy, Lakshmi Hebbalkar, Sharan Prakash Patil, and Chief Minister’s political secretary Nasir Ahmed were present at the press meet.
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Manusmriti denies economic independence to women, dalits and shudras
20 years ago, the BJP had opposed the scheme while the Manmohan Singh Government implemented the Act. It also mocked the Food Security Act. BJP’s job is to destroy pro-people laws.
Referring to Manusmriti, the Chief Minister alleged that it promotes denial of economic independence and dignity to women, Dalits, and Shudras. He said the RSS, which is inspired by such ideology, guides the BJP government.
Drawing a strong analogy, he remarked that while Nathuram Godse killed Mahatma Gandhi physically, the present government was attempting to erase his legacy by removing his name from the NREGA Act.
