The removal of Gandhi's name is also a significant aspect of the new scheme, which cleverly incorporates the name of Ram through linguistic juggling. This is a Hindu nationalist tactic that has been spreading hatred in society
THE Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) started gaining ascendancy with the Ram Janmabhoomi Rath Yatra, and it began projecting itself as a ‘party with a difference’. The party continued to taste electoral successes, but political pundits did not sound alarm bells as many of them saw little difference between the BJP and the ruling Congress.
The BJP bared its fangs after becoming a leading party in the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government under Atal Bihari Vajpayee. During its two short terms and six-year rule, many writers realised that the BJP was a ‘different kind’ of party, as it began to undermine democratic values and norms with impunity.
The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government’s first term saw the implementation of rights-based schemes, including the right to information, health, food, and education. This was arguably the best period for Indian democracy, with a focus on empowering ordinary citizens. Strong pressure from social movements ensured that the government not only fulfilled its constitutional duties and launched rights-based schemes, but also worked toward empowering marginalised sections.
Narendra Modi government’s third term has made the party’s communal agenda very overt: promoting Hindu identity-based nationalism and centralising power. It is pertinent to point out that Article 1 of our Constitution states, “India, that is Bharat, shall be a Union of States.” In place of rights-based schemes, programmes are being introduced that carry the stench of authoritarianism, in which governance is reduced to distributing freebies to the public. These schemes contain provisions that go against the spirit of decentralisation.
The BJP-RSS is often seen as anti-Muslim, but they are also against marginalised and working-class communities, including Dalits, labourers, tribals, and women. We have seen how stubbornly the government wanted to thrust the “farm laws” even when farmers were deadly against them and over 700 of them lost their lives. More recently, we have witnessed the implementation of new labour codes that have taken away rights won by workers after long struggles. And now we are seeing the same happening to agricultural labourers, as the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) has been replaced by Viksit Bharat–Rozgar and Aajeevika Guarantee Mission (Gramin) Bill, 2025 VB–G-RAM G.
Through a clever mix of English and Hindi/Urdu words in its name, it has been ensured that the abbreviation includes the word “Ram.” Lord Ram is a key component of the BJP’s identity politics, around which its divisive politics has been constructed.
According to the MGNREGA Sangharsh Morcha, “MGNREGA provided people with a legal right that was demand-based and universal—meaning that any person living in a rural area and willing to perform unskilled manual work was guaranteed employment.” In contrast, Section 5(1) of the VB–G-RAM G Bill states that “the State government shall guarantee 125 days of employment to every household in those rural areas of the State as notified by the Central government, whose members are willing to do unskilled manual work.”
A close reading reveals the reality. The Central government will notify the areas where this Act will apply. This ends the scheme’s universal character, as it limits coverage to areas notified by the Centre. Section 4(5) of the VB–G-RAM G Bill provides that “the Central government shall allocate funds to States for each financial year on the basis of objective criteria determined by it.” Section 4(6) further states that “any expenditure incurred by the State government in excess of the amount allocated to it shall be borne by the State government in such manner and through such process as may be determined by the Central government.”
Now the central government will allocate funds to states based on its own criteria, and states will have to bear additional costs. This will lead to a significant reduction in employment opportunities, as states will be unable to register demands due to financial constraints.
The new scheme also undermines Panchayati Raj, with the central government controlling infrastructure projects and prioritising its own agenda.
The removal of Gandhi’s name is another significant aspect of the new scheme, in which the name of Ram has been inserted through linguistic jugglery. This is the handiwork of Hindu nationalist ideology, which spread hatred in society and, as Sardar Patel noted, led to the loss of the Father of the Nation. Gandhi is a global figure who cannot be ignored. Hence, he has been confined merely to the role of a messenger for the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan. By removing his name from this employment scheme, the BJP is sending a political signal that it does not follow Gandhi’s ideology.
This change, in many ways, reflects the BJP’s agenda. It is distant from Gandhian thought, opposed to federalism and the concept of rights, and shows little concern for marginalised people.
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Ram Puniyani is an eminent author, activist and a former professor at IIT Mumbai. The views expressed here are author’s personal and Clarion India does not necessarily share or subscribe to them.
