In a fiery speech from Lucknow, UP Congress chief Avinash Pandey rallied supporters against what he described as a brazen assault on MGNREGA workers’ rights. Even as police maintained a tight vigil to thwart assembly marches, Pandey reaffirmed the party’s commitment to an ongoing agitation spanning 40 days statewide.
Through grassroots chaupals and street demonstrations, Congress has spotlighted how government tinkering with MGNREGA norms has effectively nullified laborers’ core benefits. “Their rights have been snatched away,” Pandey stated bluntly, underscoring the need to reinstate provisions for assured work and fair wages.
Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi have led the charge nationally, registering strong protests against these dilutions. Pandey alleged a deliberate plot to gut the pro-poor legislation, which Congress is determined to defend fiercely.
Authorities’ heavy-handed tactics—deploying forces outside leaders’ homes and blocking routes to the Vidhan Sabha—drew sharp rebuke from Pandey. He drew parallels to British raj suppressions, calling it a hallmark of authoritarian governance.
Urging the Yogi administration to listen to dissenters, Pandey warned that stifling opposition voices risks alienating the masses. Come elections, he predicted, the government would face the wrath of those whose rights it trampled.