Congress alleges wage theft under new VB-G RAM G Act

The Congress party has criticized the replacement of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) with the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Act (VB-G RAM G Act). Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh described the new legislation as a ‘surgical strike’ on the social safety net intended to protect rural India.

Ramesh cited investigative reports alleging systemic wage theft and fake attendance records. Specifically, in drought-stricken districts of Maharashtra such as Beed, reports suggest that while villagers are listed as employed on paper, they have not worked for months. The Congress party alleges that local politicians are pocketing these wages and that similar ‘clone app scams’ have been reported in other states, including Uttar Pradesh.

The party further claimed that the new Act facilitates technology-driven exclusion and the centralization of power, undermining the role of gram panchayats.