Congress’ S. Shashikant Senthil Accuses Modi Govt of Dismantling MGNREGA Scheme

Senior Congress leader and Lok Sabha MP S. Shashikant Senthil on Saturday launched a sharp attack on the Narendra Modi-led Central government, accusing it of systematically weakening the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) under the pretext of reforms.

Addressing a press conference at Rajiv Bhavan, Senthil alleged that recent changes to MGNREGA amounted to an assault on Mahatma Gandhi’s vision of Gram Swaraj, decentralised development and the constitutional right to work. The press meet was attended by Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee president Deepak Baij, Leader of Opposition Dr. Charandas Mahant, AICC in-charge secretary Vijay Jangid and several other senior party leaders.

Allegations Against the Centre

Senthil claimed that the Modi government has gradually hollowed out MGNREGA over the past decade and has now moved to dismantle its core legal and constitutional framework.

He alleged that the new model removes the rights-based guarantee of employment and converts MGNREGA into a conditional, centrally controlled scheme dependent on administrative discretion rather than legal entitlement.

The Congress leader further accused the Centre of shifting the financial burden onto states, claiming that while MGNREGA was earlier fully funded by the Union government, states are now being forced to bear nearly 40 per cent of the cost. At the same time, he said, the Centre continues to retain control over rules, branding and political credit, calling the move anti-federal in nature.

Senthil also raised concerns over what he termed the arbitrary suspension of work, alleging that the new framework allows employment to be halted for fixed periods each year. This, he said, gives governments the power to decide when the poor can work and when they cannot, leading to distress migration and economic insecurity.

Centralisation and Digital Control

He further alleged that decentralised powers vested in Gram Sabhas and Panchayats are being withdrawn and replaced with a centralised digital monitoring system involving GIS mapping, biometric verification and algorithm-based controls, which he said ignore local realities and needs.

Warning that the demand-driven nature of MGNREGA is being diluted, Senthil said the scheme is being converted into an allocation-based model, allowing the Centre to cap employment and restrict funds to states.

According to him, since 2014, budget cuts, delayed fund releases, deletion of job cards and mandatory Aadhaar-based payments have pushed crores of workers out of the scheme, limiting employment to just 50–55 days per year on average.

National Herald Case

On the National Herald case, Senthil alleged that the Enforcement Directorate’s action against Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi was driven by political vendetta rather than legal grounds.

He said recent court observations had exposed the case as baseless and politically motivated, noting that proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act cannot be sustained without a scheduled offence. He also pointed out that for several years, neither the CBI nor the ED had found grounds to register an FIR, and that the ED had overstepped its mandate.

Congress’ Stand

Senthil said these developments reflected a broader pattern of what he described as anti-worker, anti-poor and anti-federal governance under the BJP-led Centre.

“The Congress Party will oppose this attack on rural employment, constitutional rights and democratic institutions at every level, from the streets to Parliament,” he said, adding, “Truth is alive. Satyameva Jayate.”

Several Congress leaders, including former minister Dr. Shivkumar Dahariya and senior party functionaries, were present at the press conference.

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