The Centre had not paid dues worth Rs 7,500cr under MGNREGA and out of the money Rs 2,800 crore is the due in the form of wages MOHUA MOITRA Trinamul Congress MP

Coming down heavily on Union home minister Amit Shah, a day before his visit to the state, Mohua Moitra, Trinamul Congress MP said the Centre has no right to withhold the money due to the workers, under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (scheme).

Ms Moitra said the Centre had not paid dues worth Rs 7,500cr under MGNREGA and out of the money Rs 2,800 crore is the due in the form of wages.

“The Supreme Court said that the workers under MGNREGA should get the money within 15 days after they completed their work.

If they fail to get their wages on time then first 15 per cent additional money is to be paid as compensation and then 50 per cent if the delay gets longer,” she said, adding, “The UPA government had set up MGNREGA in 2009 so that the poorest of the poor could get jobs for 100 days. Now, they are being deprived. West Bengal government will not spare the Centre till the dues are not cleared,” she maintained. She said the poor people had not received houses under Awas Yojana.

“The dues have reached a staggering Rs 8,600cr and the Centre is sitting on it,” she remarked. She said the BJP had 18 MPs and 70 MLAs and instead of working for the development of West Bengal they were trying to ensure that the West Bengal government does not get its dues.

She alleged that the BJP was trying to disturb the peace and communal harmony of Bengal by engineering riots. “I was born in Kolkata and had never experienced such tension before any festival. A boy, who is a BJP supporter, was caught brandishing arms. His mother told the police that he is a BJP supporter.

Is this the way to celebrate Ram Navami,” she asked Mr Shah. Ms Moitra said, referring to Miss Banerjee, as “Didi o Didi” by Narendra Modi before the 2021 Assembly election did not go down well with the women of Bengal.

She said, “Kailash Vijayvargiya said that women who are wrongly dressed are as bad as Surpanakha. He should know this is Bengal and we decide what to wear, eat or dress. We enjoy that freedom. This is our state and we will continue to enjoy this freedom.”