Siddaramaiah cites Naidu’s concerns, says NDA may favour allies over Opposition in RAM G allocation

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandrababu Naidu’s concerns over the implementation of the VB-G RAM G Act are politically significant and consequential for Centre–State relations.

These concerns are important as they come from a key ally of the BJP whose support is critical to the Modi government. Siddaramaiah’s statement came in response to reports of Naidu expressing concerns over the altered funding pattern and the additional burden on states arising from the new VB-G RAM G law.

For months, the Congress party and Opposition-ruled states, including Karnataka, have warned that the VB-G RAM G Act weakens 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. The Union Government and the BJP must explain why the same objections were earlier dismissed as political criticism, the CM said in his statement.

The contrast between the two laws is clear. Under the MGNREG Act, 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, he said.

This shift has serious implications. When a Chief Minister 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, Siddaramaiah said.

If NDA partners, especially the AP CM, find the new framework unsustainable, these concerns must be raised openly in Parliament. They cannot be addressed through selective concessions or private assurances, he added.

“The developments reported today make it clear that the VB-G RAM G Act must be repealed and the MGNREGA Act restored, with necessary reforms.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,” the CM said.