Chandigarh, December 31
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann has, over the past nearly four years, failed to provide the statutory 100 days of employment under MGNREGA to lakhs of people from weaker and deprived sections, workers, and Dalit families. By doing so, he has not only taken away the guarantee of employment but has also snatched bread from the plates of the poor, hurting their dignity and self-respect, said Ashwani Sharma, Working President, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Punjab, accompanied by State Vice-President Subhash Sharma and State Media Head Vineet Joshi at a press conference in Chandigarh.
Sharma said that during the Assembly session, the Speaker allotted limited time, and whatever time is given is repeatedly disrupted by members of the ruling party. For this reason, on December 29, he held a press conference and presented facts to the public regarding serious issues related to MGNREGA. “As expected, the Chief Minister did not respond to these questions. Had he had answers, he would have given them—because responding would have exposed to the entire Punjab that the AAP government has taken away the employment guarantee of the poor under MGNREGA”, he added.
Through the media, Sharma again questioned the Chief Minister: when the Modi-led Union Government sends funds for 100 days of employment for every worker in Punjab, why does the state government not provide full 100 days of employment to workers? He further asked why mandatory social audits under MGNREGA were not conducted in 6,095 gram panchayats in 2024–25 and in 7,389 gram panchayats in 2025–26—whose corruption is being hidden? He also questioned why no action has been taken so far in 10,653 corruption cases detected by the Special Audit Unit, and why the guilty are being protected.
Sharma stated that MGNREGA workers and their organizations have consistently accused Aam Aadmi Party MLAs, MPs, and local leaders of involvement in corruption. Despite this, the government’s and the Chief Minister’s inaction clearly shows that through corruption in MGNREGA, AAP leaders and MLAs have snatched the livelihood from the mouths of the poor.
