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Chandigarh: In a stormy special session of the Punjab Vidhan Sabha, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government on Tuesday moved and adopted an official resolution urging the Centre to retain the demand-based, rights-based and fully centrally sponsored structure of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), 2005, and to reconsider key provisions of the Viksit Bharat—Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Act.

The resolution argued that the amended framework imposes an undue financial burden on states and dilutes the statutory right to employment of rural labourers, thereby undermining the very spirit of MGNREGA. The debate witnessed rare unity on one side, with MLAs from AAP, Congress and the Shiromani Akali Dal sharply criticising the BJP-led Union government. At the same time, the Opposition simultaneously demanded a separate discussion on the deteriorating law-and-order situation in the state.

‘Threat to the Rural Poor’

Tabling the resolution, Tarunpreet Singh Sond, Punjab’s Rural Development and Panchayat Minister, warned that the VB-G RAM G Act would severely impact below-poverty-line families, Scheduled Caste communities and rural labourers who depend on MGNREGA as a lifeline.

He said the House was recommending that the state government formally take up the issue with the Centre to protect MGNREGA’s demand-driven character and oppose any dilution that shifts the financial onus onto states or weakens the legal guarantee of work.

Heated Exchange Over Rebel MLA

The debate took a dramatic turn when rebel SAD MLA Dr Sukhwinder Kumar Sukhi rose to speak. Leader of Opposition Partap Singh Bajwa objected, questioning under which party’s quota the MLA was being allowed to speak.

Bajwa demanded clarity on whether Dr Sukhi—now the chairman of a government board—was speaking on behalf of the Opposition or the ruling party. Despite repeated appeals from Deputy Speaker Jai Krishan Singh Rouri, Bajwa refused to relent.

AAP state president Aman Arora intervened, remarking that Dr Sukhi was to AAP what rebel Congress MLA Sandeep Jakhar was to the Congress. Bajwa shot back that the Congress legislature party had not allowed Jakhar to speak. The matter was finally settled when Aman Arora formally stated on the floor of the House that Dr Sukhi was now part of the AAP fold. Dr Sukhi had been elected on a SAD ticket before defecting to AAP last year.

‘Centre Snatching States’ Rights’

Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema launched a broader attack on the BJP-led Union government, accusing it of centralising powers at the cost of states’ rights. Referring to the changes in MGNREGA, Cheema said it was the first time a major government scheme had been named with a religious connotation, alleging that the move violated constitutional values.

He further accused the BJP of attempting to weaken the Constitution and highlighted the Punjab government’s initiatives, particularly those aimed at Dalit welfare and social justice.

Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Chouhan Objects to Assembly Resolution

Outside the House, Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan criticised the Punjab Assembly for holding a special session to pass a resolution against a central law. He said the move ran contrary to the spirit of India’s federal structure, noting that the legislation had already been debated at length in Parliament.

“Parliament has passed a law after detailed discussion. Passing a resolution against it in a state assembly goes against the basic spirit of federalism,” Chouhan said, adding that ample opportunity for debate had been provided in the Lok Sabha before the Act’s passage. The resolution now sets the stage for a fresh Centre-state confrontation over rural employment policy, federal finances and the future of MGNREGA, even as Punjab’s ruling dispensation positions itself as a defender of rural workers’ statutory rights.