AAP stages protest in Nabha against Centre over scrapping of MGNREGA, burns effigy of PM Modi

Hundreds of MGNREGA workers, including women, participated in the protest and raised slogans against the anti-labour BJP government.

These workers built our country; the Modi government is snatching away their livelihood: Dev Mann

Statewide agitation will continue until the Centre withdraws anti-worker changes in MGNREGA: Gurpreet Singh GP

Chandigarh/Nabha, January 2026 :The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) organised a massive protest at Patiala Gate in Nabha against what it described as the BJP-led central government’s systematic attempt to dismantle the MGNREGA scheme. Hundreds of MGNREGA workers took to the streets, raised slogans against the Centre, and burned an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to express their anger over what they called poor- and labour-unfriendly policy changes in the employment guarantee programme.

Speaking to the media, AAP विधायक Gurdev Singh Dev Mann said that the Centre may change the name of MGNREGA if it wishes, but a complete change in its policy and intent is unacceptable. He alleged that the Modi government has altered the very soul of MGNREGA. According to him, the new policies are aimed at crushing the poor, strangling their means of livelihood, and pushing them further into poverty.

Dev Mann accused the Centre of betraying those who built the nation with their hard work. He said that from roads and fields to tall buildings, and from needles to airplanes, the country has been built by workers. Yet today, it is these very workers who are being targeted. He alleged that those who formed governments by taking the votes of the poor since 1947 are now punishing them.

The MLA strongly opposed the Centre’s decision to shift 40 per cent of MGNREGA funding onto the states, calling it “completely unjustified and anti-federal.” He questioned how states would bear this additional burden, terming it a direct attack on the federal structure and an attempt to weaken welfare schemes.

Dev Mann thanked Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for convening a special session of the Assembly and uniting voices in support of MGNREGA. He said that under the Chief Minister’s leadership, the Punjab Assembly has clearly demanded that MGNREGA be restored in its original form and that all anti-poor changes be rolled back. He added that AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal, senior leader Manish Sisodia, Aman Arora, and the entire party stand firmly with MGNREGA workers.

AAP leader Amrik Singh Bangar was also present at the protest and expressed solidarity with the workers while condemning the Centre’s policies.

Addressing the gathering, AAP SC Wing president Gurpreet Singh GP said the party is leading statewide protests to protect MGNREGA. He said demonstrations are being held across Punjab—after a protest in Jalandhar, the agitation reached Nabha, and it will intensify throughout the state.

Gurpreet Singh GP accused the BJP-led central government of continuously attacking the rights of farmers, workers, and backward sections. He said that first the three “black” farm laws were imposed on farmers, then attempts were made to weaken the Constitution, and now, through new MGNREGA provisions, working women and poor families are being hit the hardest. He asserted that this injustice would not be tolerated.

He warned that the agitation would continue until the Centre withdraws these changes. He said the struggle will go on until the Modi government rolls back its anti-worker policies. Punjab, he said, has always opposed injustice and will not tolerate continued discrimination against the state and its people.

AAP leaders reiterated that the poor are neither weak nor fearful and declared that they are the true owners of the country. They vowed to strongly oppose any attempt to snatch away their rights and resolved to take the fight of MGNREGA workers to every corner of Punjab.

Team Maverick