Gurdaspur/Hoshiarpur, Jan 8: The Congress on Thursday mounted a twin attack on the BJP-led Union government and the Aam Aadmi Party administration in Punjab while launching its ‘MGNREGA Bachao Sangram’, aimed at restoring the rural employment guarantee programme.
The campaign opened with large public meetings in Gurdaspur, drawing thousands of party workers and rural residents. Congress leaders said the agitation would continue until MGNREGA is fully revived and the new labour framework withdrawn.
Congress general secretary Bhupesh Baghel said welfare policies for labourers and marginalised communities had historically come from the Congress. “MGNREGA is a Congress legacy that provided employment security and respect to crores of rural families,” he told the gathering.
Baghel alleged that the Modi government weakened the scheme, forcing the Congress to step in as the voice of labourers. He also criticised the AAP government in Punjab, saying it failed to meet even its basic financial obligations under the programme.
Punjab Congress chief Raja Warring said the AAP had only indulged in symbolism. “Passing resolutions and holding special Assembly sessions means nothing if no money is allocated for work on the ground,” he said.
Warring claimed Punjab’s MGNREGA implementation had fallen to “less than one per cent” under the AAP government. “If the state government was serious, it should have announced at least Rs 4,000 crore from its own resources to provide employment,” he added.
Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa alleged that Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had surrendered Punjab’s interests to the party’s central leadership. “The Chief Minister is only a face; the real decisions are being taken in Delhi,” Bajwa said.
He also accused the AAP government of failing on law and order and economic management. “Punjab’s debt has crossed Rs 4.5 lakh crore, while the rural poor are being pushed deeper into distress,” Bajwa claimed.
Senior Congress leaders, including Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Bharindermeet Singh Pahara, also addressed the rallies, while several MLAs, former ministers and party office-bearers were present.
