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Congress MP Shashi Tharoor took a sharp dig at the BJP-led Centre while opposing the VB-G RAM G Bill in the Lok Sabha, recalling the 1971 hit Bollywood number — “Dekho o deewano (tum) ye kaam na karo, Ram ka naam badnaam na karo”.
The four- time MP from Kerala’s Thiruvananthapuram asserted that the bill is not merely an administrative tweak but an “assault on the very spirit and philosophical foundation of this crucial programme”.
The Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025, that seeks to replace the existing rural employment law Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday amid strong objections from the opposition over the “removal” of Gandhi’s name from it.
Introducing the bill, Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said the Centre not only believes in Gandhi but also follows his principles. “The (Narendra) Modi government has done more for rural development than previous governments,” he said.
Opposition members opposed the proposed legislation at the introduction stage and pressed for sending the bill to a parliamentary panel for greater scrutiny. The MPs, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra of the Congress, strongly objected to the “removal” of Gandhi’s name.
Tharoor said the VB-G RAM G Bill represents a “deeply regrettable and retrograde step” for the country and for its commitment to the welfare of its most vulnerable citizens.
“My first objection, as with others, is the ill-advised decision to remove the name of the Father of the Nation, for the reasons already stated, which I will not repeat. But this is not merely an administrative tweak, it is an assault on the very spirit and philosophical foundation of this crucial programme,” he said.
Asserting that Gandhi’s vision of Ram Rajya was never a purely political project, the former Union minister said it was a socio-economic blueprint rooted in the empowerment of villages, and his unwavering faith in Gram Swaraj was part of his vision of Ram Rajya.
“The original Act, by bearing his name, acknowledged this profound connection — that true employment guarantee and upliftment must flow from the grassroots, embodying his principle of the last person first. To remove the name of Mahatma Gandhi is to strip the bill of its moral compass and historical legitimacy,” Tharoor said.
“Then to have two languages in the title just to make the acronym G RAM G is not just a violation of Article 348, as pointed out in the previous discussion, but it also reminds me of a song from my childhood — ‘Dekho o deewano (tum) ye kaam na karo, Ram ka naam badnaam na karo’,” he added.
The Congress leader also called for seriously questioning the intent behind the financial restructuring proposed in the bill.
“The proposal to impose 40 per cent of the financial burden directly on state governments is not merely fiscally irresponsible, it is a measure that threatens to make the entire programme unviable,” he said.
