NEW DELHI: The Opposition INDIA bloc has mounted a strong pushback as the government moves to push through two controversial Bills in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, the SHANTI Bill, aimed at opening the nuclear sector to private players, and the VB-G RAM G Bill to replace the MGNREGA law governing the rural employment scheme.
With both Bills listed for passage in the Lok Sabha’s List of Business on Wednesday, the INDIA bloc’s floor leaders are set to meet ahead of the session at the office of the Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, to coordinate a united strategy.
Opposition leaders have warned that the Bills could have far-reaching consequences, potentially undermining rural livelihoods and handing strategic sectors over to corporate interests.
The Congress will also hold a meeting of its MPs in the morning and has issued a whip directing members to remain present in the House until the session concludes on December 19.
Opposition parties have demanded that the new VB-G RAM G Bill, which seeks to replace the two-decade-old MGNREGA, be referred to a standing committee. However, the government has shown no inclination to relent.
The Opposition has also sought parliamentary scrutiny of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Bill, 2025 (SHANTI), which proposes opening up the nuclear power sector to private players. NDA ally Telugu Desam Party (TDP) is also learnt to have urged the government to refer the VB-G RAM G Bill to a standing committee.
In a post on X, Congress MP Manickam Tagore attacked the government’s “tearing hurry”, alleging a deliberate attempt to bypass parliamentary scrutiny. “Today’s Lok Sabha List of Business exposes the government’s real priorities. One Bill to open strategic nuclear energy to corporates like Adani. Another Bill to erase Mahatma Gandhi from the people’s employment guarantee. This is not coincidence. This is design,” he wrote.
Tagore added that the INDIA bloc floor leaders would meet at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s chamber at 10.15 am to coordinate a joint resistance.
He accused the government of pushing legislation without standing committee scrutiny, stakeholder consultations, Business Advisory Committee discussions, or adequate time for debate.
“Parliament is not a notice board. It is the supreme forum of democracy. But Modi–Shah are running it like the Gujarat Assembly model, bulldoze first, silence later,” he said.
Calling the removal of Mahatma Gandhi’s name from the employment guarantee law “ideological vandalism” and the opening up of strategic sectors “economic cronyism”, Tagore said both moves would hurt the poor and weaken democratic institutions.
The Lok Sabha witnessed noisy scenes on Tuesday after the government introduced the VB-G RAM G Bill, triggering strong protests from the Opposition.
Several MPs accused the Centre of dismantling a rights-based welfare scheme and undermining Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy, demanding that the Bill be sent to a parliamentary panel.
Defending the legislation, Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the government remained committed to Gandhian principles and had done more for rural development than previous regimes. “The Modi government has increased workdays from 100 to 125 days,” he said.
Leading the Opposition attack, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra warned that the proposed law would dilute the legal guarantee of employment and place a heavier financial burden on states. She alleged that the Bill would give the Centre the power to pre-determine fund allocation, effectively ending the demand-driven nature of the scheme and violating the spirit of the 73rd Constitutional Amendment.
Other Opposition parties, including the Trinamool Congress and the DMK, echoed the criticism, objecting to the removal of Gandhi’s name and the shift from a demand-driven to a supply-driven framework. After staging a walkout, Opposition leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and DMK MP T.R. Baalu, protested at Mahatma Gandhi’s statue in the Parliament complex, raising slogans such as “the country will not tolerate this insult to Mahatma Gandhi.”
