Agartala, February 17 – The opposition Congress organised a massive rally in Agartala on Tuesday, accusing the BJP-led central government of weakening and effectively withdrawing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
Hundreds of Congress supporters, led by senior leaders carrying party flags and banners, joined the rally that began from Swami Vivekananda Maidan.
The rally, which was intended to reach the Lok Bhavan (Governor's house), was stopped by police in the Buddhamandir area amid heavy security deployment.
Addressing the gathering, senior Congress leaders, including state Congress president Asish Kumar Saha, former minister and MLA Sudip Roy Barman, and MLA Birajit Sinha, sharply criticised the Centre over what they termed as the systematic dilution of MGNREGA.
Speaking to reporters, Roy Barman, also a member of the Congress working committee, described MGNREGA as a "historic scheme" introduced by the Congress-led UPA government in 2005 and alleged that key provisions allowing citizens to demand employment had been weakened.
"Access to work under the scheme has become increasingly difficult," he said. He further alleged that financial and planning powers earlier vested with Panchayats have been curtailed, and that states are now required to bear up to 40 per cent of the expenditure, adversely affecting poorer states.
"When states fail to meet this burden, the rural poor suffer. Those dependent on MGNREGA lose livelihood opportunities," Roy Barman said, adding that the Congress submitted a memorandum to the Governor demanding the proper implementation of the Act.
The Congress leader also criticised the ongoing tussle between the BJP and its ally, the Tipra Motha Party (TMP), ahead of the crucial election to the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous District Council (TTAADC), calling it "political drama."
Referring to recent statements by Chief Minister Manik Saha and TMP chief Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma on the Kokborok (tribal language) Roman script issue, Roy Barman claimed that the controversy was being used to divert attention from core governance issues.
He reiterated that Congress supports the Roman script for Kokborok, stating that indigenous communities have the democratic right to choose their own script.
"Portraying it as foreign is an excuse. Sensitive cultural issues are being politicised instead of addressing unemployment and livelihood concerns," he alleged.
Congress leaders maintained that while political theatrics dominate the discourse ahead of the TTAADC polls, critical issues like rural employment and social security are being ignored.
Later, a 6-member delegation met Governor Indra Sena Reddy Nallu in Lok Bhavan and submitted a memorandum highlighting their issues. The Congress demanded the withdrawal of the newly enacted Viksit Bharat-Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G Act, 2025).