Karnataka CM Urges His AP Counterpart Naidu, NDA Allies To Raise Voice Against VB-GRAM G In Parliament

Bengaluru: Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has urged his counterpart from Andhra Pradesh, Chandrababu Naidu and other NDA allies to raise their concerns over VB-GRAM G openly in Parliament.

Siddaramaiah's insistence is based on media reports that Naidu privately raised concerns with the Centre over the implementation of the VB-GRAM G Act, especially regarding the altered funding pattern and sought an alternative financial assistance for Andhra Pradesh.

"These concerns are politically significant and consequential for Centre-State relations. They are also important as they come from a key ally of the BJP whose support is critical to the Narendra Modi Government. But they cannot be addressed through selective concessions or private assurances. If Naidu finds the new framework unsustainable, then these concerns must be raised openly in Parliament," he said.

Further, he said, the Congress and Opposition-ruled states, including Karnataka, for months, have warned that the VB-GRAM G Act weakens cooperative federalism by shifting financial responsibility to states. A BJP ally now echoing these concerns exposes a clear rupture within the NDA and undermines the BJP's defence of the law. The BJP and the Union Government must explain why the same objections were earlier dismissed as political criticism, he added.

Drawing a contrast between the new and old employment guarantee schemes, Siddaramaiah said under the MGNREGA, rural employment was a legal right backed by assured central funding. Under the new Act, that certainty is lost. States are required to implement the programme while sharing the cost, without any statutory guarantee of funds. What was once a guaranteed right of the people has been reduced to a matter of negotiation.

"This shift has serious implications. When a Chief Minister (Naidu) is compelled to seek alternative financial support through private negotiations, it signals that access to funds is being determined by bargaining power rather than by law. IN the present political context, theis raise the risk that allocations may be influenced by political alignment, adversely affecting Opposition-ruled states, including Karnataka," Siddaramaiah said.

He said that Naidu's insistence on alternative financial assistance makes it clear that the VB-GRAM G Act must be repealed and the MGNREGA must be restored with necessary reforms. "Employment security cannot be converted into a negotiable arrangement. Cooperative federalism must be sustained through guaranteed funding and equal treatment of all states, not through uncertainty and coalition arithmetic," he added.