Reports on CM Naidu’s VB-G RAM G Act concerns significant: Siddaramaiah
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Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said reports of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu flagging concerns over the VB-G RAM G Act’s funding pattern are politically significant and have implications for Centre-State relations.
These concerns assumed importance as they come from a key ally of the BJP whose support is critical to the Narendra Modi government, he said.
Sharing a news article titled "Naidu seeks assistance to state for enforcing new rural jobs law" on his official handle on 'X', Siddaramaiah said the VB-G RAM G Act must be repealed and the MGNREGA Act restored, with necessary reforms.
"The reports that the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh N Chandrababu Naidu has raised concerns with the Union Government over the implementation of the VB-G RAM G Act - especially regarding the altered funding pattern and the additional burden on states - are politically significant and consequential for Centre–State relations," he said.
Siddaramaiah claimed that for months, the Congress party and opposition-ruled states, including Karnataka, have warned that the VB-G RAM G Act undermines cooperative federalism by shifting financial responsibility onto states.
"A BJP ally now echoing these concerns exposes a clear rupture within the NDA and undermines the BJP’s defence of the law," he said.
Siddaramaiah demanded that the union government and the BJP explain why the same objections were earlier dismissed as political criticism, saying the contrast between the two laws is clear.
He highlighted that under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (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," the Karanataka CM alleged.
He further alleged that this shift has serious implications, saying when a CM is compelled to seek “alternative financial support” through private discussions, it signals that access to funds is being determined by bargaining power rather than by law.
"In the present political context, this raises the risk that allocations may be influenced by political alignment, adversely affecting Opposition-ruled states, including Karnataka," he said.
Siddaramaiah said if NDA partners, especially the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, find the new framework unsustainable, these concerns must be raised openly in Parliament. They cannot be addressed through selective concessions or private assurances.
"The developments reported today make it clear that the VB-G RAM G Act must be repealed and the MGNREGA Act 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.
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Vijay unable to prove majority, not invited for CM oath ceremony: Sources
Chennai: Actor-politician Vijay has reportedly not been invited to take oath as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu after failing to demonstrate support from the required number of MLAs, sources in Raj Bhavan said.
According to media reports that quoted sources in the office of R.N. Ravi Arlekar, Vijay could not prove the backing of 118 legislators, the majority mark in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly.
Despite last-minute efforts to secure support from the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK), Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazagam (AMMK), and an IUML legislator, Vijay reportedly managed support from only 116 MLAs, falling short by two members.
Sources said Vijay failed to submit letters of support from the VCK and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).
Later, the IUML issued a statement clarifying that it was not part of the TVK-led alliance.
Meanwhile, AMMK leader T.T.V. Dhinakaran is also said to have informed the Governor that his party would support the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) instead.
Earlier in the evening, Vijay had met Governor Arlekar and staked claim to form the government, stating that he enjoyed the support of 118 MLAs.
