In a sharp critique from Guwahati, Congress leader Ragini Nayak launched a direct attack on the central government this Sunday. The national spokesperson for the All India Congress Committee (AICC) condemned the recent decision to rename the flagship rural jobs scheme, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
Accusations of Deceitful Politics
Addressing the media in Assam's capital, Nayak expressed strong disapproval of the scheme's new name, 'VB-G RAM G'. She accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Narendra Modi-led government of employing a tactic to mask their administrative shortcomings. "Those who do no work are the ones who spend their time renaming the work done by others," Nayak stated pointedly during her press interaction.
She framed the renaming as a politically motivated act. The Congress leader argued that the move involved two significant symbolic shifts: the removal of Mahatma Gandhi's name and the forceful insertion of the word 'Ram'. According to Nayak, this reveals the core strategy of the BJP.
The 'Ram' in Politics Debate
Nayak preemptively countered potential political narratives that might emerge from the criticism. She clarified that the Congress party's objection was not religious but political in nature. "Behind the removal of Gandhiji's name and the forceful addition of the word 'Ram' lies the deceitful politics of BJP," she asserted.
Further elaborating her stance, Nayak added, "Now Modi will say Congress cannot tolerate Ram's name. We have no problem with Ram, our problem is with the party that drags Ram into politics." This statement aims to distinguish between reverence for the deity and the alleged use of the name for political gain, a charge frequently leveled by opposition parties against the BJP.
Broader Political Context
The controversy erupts amidst ongoing political skirmishes where the opposition has consistently accused the BJP of renaming existing schemes, institutions, and places initiated by previous governments. The MGNREGA scheme, launched by the UPA government, has been a subject of political tussle for years, with debates over its implementation and funding.
Nayak's remarks in Guwahati are likely to fuel further debate in the political arena, especially in the context of the upcoming electoral battles. The accusation that the government is focusing on nomenclature rather than substantive work touches upon a persistent critique from the opposition benches. This incident underscores the deep symbolic and substantive divisions in Indian politics, where names and legacy projects become key battlegrounds.
