Chandigarh, Dec 31 (IANS) Punjab Minister for Rural Development and Panchayats Tarunpreet Singh Sond on Wednesday led hundreds of labourers in a protest against the Union government’s newly enacted Viksit Bharat — Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act, 2025 (VB-G RAM G), which replaced the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

Addressing the gathering in Khanna town, Sond termed the VB-GRAM Act a “black, draconian and anti-poor law” that will devastate the rural economy and snatch bread from the mouths of the most vulnerable sections of society. “The BJP-led Central government has betrayed rural India by bringing this black law. It directly attacks the livelihoods of lakhs of poor families who depend on MGNREGA for survival,” Sond said.

“This new Act cruelly denies work during peak agricultural seasons, exactly when families need it most. This is not development; this is destruction of the rural poor.” The minister highlighted that Scheduled Caste communities, women, and landless labourers will suffer the most.

“The AAP will not remain silent. We will take this fight to the streets of Delhi. We will not allow the BJP government to snatch the hard-earned rights of our workers,” Sond added.

Meanwhile, AAP spokesperson Kuldeep Dhaliwal launched a scathing attack on the BJP-led central government and Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), accusing them of conspiring against poor, Dalits, and women MGNREGA workers through the G-RAM-G Act.

Addressing the media in Amritsar, Dhaliwal said, “By bringing this new Bill in the name of reforms, the BJP has snatched the last morsel from the mouths of the poor. This Act is nothing but an assault on the livelihood of crores of MGNREGA workers, especially Dalits and marginalised communities.” He said AAP strongly opposed the Act in the state Assembly and would not hesitate to take the fight to the streets.

–IANS

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