LUCKNOW, Dec. 21 -- The BJP government has dismantled the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) in an attempt to weaken Mahatma Gandhi's vision and deprive the poorest citizens of their constitutional right to work, alleged Congress leaders in a press conference here on Saturday.

Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, which guarantees 125 days of wage employment to people in rural areas, replaces the UPA-era MNREGA.

All India Congress Committee general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP Syed Nasir Hussain said, "MNREGA was conceived as a demand-driven scheme rooted in Gandhi's belief that work is worship and labour is God. The BJP government reduced it to a mere wage-distribution schem...