Jaipur, Jan. 12 -- The Congress on Sunday stepped up its agitation against the alleged scrapping of the MGNREGA law by the Centre with the VB-G Ram G Act, organising sit-in protests and fasts at all district headquarters under the MGNREGA Bachao Sangram campaign. Senior party leaders, including Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee president Govind Singh Dotasra, AICC in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully, participated in the main protest held at Shaheed Smarak in Jaipur. Addressing the media after the programme, Dotasra accused the BJP-led central government of taking away the livelihood of the rural poor by effectively ending MGNREGA. "MGNREGA strengthened the economic condition of the poor, enabled them to educate their children and protected them from exploitation by moneylenders and usurers," he said. Dotasra alleged that the Centre has now dismantled the scheme under the guise of introducing a new framework. He claimed the new system offers no guaranteed right to work, restricts employment to locations and limits decided by the Centre, and caps work according to budgetary allocations. He further alleged that while the Centre earlier bore the full wage cost, it has now shifted 40% of the financial burden onto states. Highlighting Rajasthan's financial situation, the Congress leader said that due to what he termed two years of financial mismanagement by the BJP state government, even payment of salaries has become difficult. Claiming that the state's debt has crossed Rs.1.25 lakh crore, Dotasra said Rajasthan would be unable to shoulder the additional 40% burden, asserting that the new provisions were designed to eventually shut down the scheme. Dotasra announced that the Congress would continue its struggle to restore MGNREGA in its original form, with party leaders and workers reaching out to villages and hamlets to expose what he described as the BJP's "anti-poor agenda". Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully questioned whether the Rajasthan government was prepared to bear the 40% share under the new scheme despite the state's strained finances. Commenting on it, BJP president Madan Rathore defended the VB G-RAM G scheme, saying the Congress should support it instead of objecting to its name. He said the scheme increases guaranteed employment from 100 to 125 days, and up to 150 days in tribal areas, with provisions to avoid disruption during sowing season. Rathore claimed strict steps have been taken to curb corruption, preventing misuse of job cards, and alleged past irregularities under the Congress regime....