SC order on MGNREGA 'supreme blow' to Centre, victory for poor people of Bengal: TMC

Kolkata: The Trinamool Congress (TMC) on Tuesday said that the Supreme Court verdict allowing the prospective implementation of MGNREGA in West Bengal from August 1 this year is a "supreme blow" to the Centre and a victory for the poor people of the state. The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the Centre's plea challenging the Calcutta High Court order, which directed that MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act), the 100-day job guarantee scheme, be implemented prospectively in West Bengal from August 1, 2025. A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta refused to entertain the plea filed against the June 18 order of the high court, saying the high court's order did not warrant interference. Addressing reporters here, state Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Pradip Mazumdar said nearly 2.58 crore job card holders would now be saved from the "political deprivation" of the BJP. "The BJP acted against the interests of the people of West Bengal by depriving them. This deprivation, which was illegal and politically motivated, hurt the poor people of the state," he said. "The Supreme Court verdict is a big blow to the BJP. The TMC leadership, including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and party general secretary and Lok Sabha MP Abhishek Banerjee, have time and again raised their voice against the deprivation and also staged protests in Delhi," the minister said.

Mazumdar said the CM decided to pay money for the 100 days' work from the state's coffers after it was not paid by the Centre. In its order, the high court said the Centre is fully empowered to impose special conditions, restrictions and regulations, which have not been imposed in other states, to ensure that no irregularity occurs while the scheme is being implemented in West Bengal. Allowing the Centre to continue its inquiry into the allegations of irregularities in some districts of the state, the high court had directed that the MGNREGA be implemented prospectively with effect from August 1. "At this juncture, the endeavour of the court is to the implementation of the scheme in the state of West Bengal, which has been kept in abeyance for the past close to three years," the high court had said. It had said the Centre would be entitled to impose any other special conditions and ensure that the scheme was effectively and properly implemented in the state without giving any room for any irregularity or illegality being committed.