Was shocked to hear PM Modi speak against MGNREGA, he didn't understand its depth: Rahul Gandhi

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remark against MGNREGA in the Lok Sabha. He did not understand its depth, Gandhi said.

Congress scion Rahul Gandhi on Saturday took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remark against MGNREGA in the Lok Sabha. He said he was shocked to hear that PM Modi called the scheme a living monument of the failures of the UPA. It made me realise that the PM actually had not understood the depth of MGNREGA.

During his address in Wayanad amid his three-day visit to Kerala, Rahul Gandhi said, "PM Modi had not understood that MGNREGA has forever transformed the Indian labour market. He had not understood that MGNREGA was, for millions and millions of Indian people, the last resort and huge protection."

"He (PM) called it a drain on the exchequer and dole for poor people," Gandhi noted.

Speaking about the scheme, he said, "Before MGNREGA, there used to be a minimum wage but no one was bothered about that wage. So it provided a floor below which no body would be asked to work. But the other idea of the scheme was that it should be an evolving idea - a dynamic-changing idea that guarantees a floor below which no Indian person should ever work."

"The other part of MGNREGA was that we should use our people to build infrastructure and the idea was to build India with dignity. So it was designed to protect our people and in no way it was a dole or charity," he added.