<p>The TMC on Thursday slammed the union government for withholding MNREGS funds due to the state and asked Home Minister Amit Shah to clarify the Centre's stand during his impending visit. Depriving the poor of their dues is tantamount to forced labour and a violation of constitutional norms, TMC MP Mahua Moitra said. The BJP hit back saying the Bengal government has not given the details of expenditure for the scheme during the past three years.</p>.<p>Trinamool Congress and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee have criticised the Centre repeatedly for withholding the state's MGNREGS funds. Referring to Shah's scheduled two-day visit to the state from Friday, Moitra said he has to answer why the poor engaged in the 100 days work scheme have not received their dues despite working under a central scheme.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/east-and-northeast/tmc-will-soon-cease-to-be-even-a-state-party-suvendu-adhikari-1209045.html" target="_blank">TMC will soon cease to be even a state party: Suvendu Adhikari</a></strong><br /><br />"When you come here as a leader of the BJP which is governing at the Centre, you have to answer why our workers have not been paid despite working under the 100 days' work scheme. MGNREGS was set up with one idea – that the poorest of the poor have at least 100 days of guaranteed employment. The Government of India gives the guarantee. "The law also states that if any wage earner does not receive his/her wage within 15 days, the person is entitled to compensation," Moitra said.</p>.<p>She said Bengal has been denied Rs 7,500 crore in MGNREGS payments since December 2021. Of this, Rs 2,800 crore is for payment of wages. "As a result, 17 lakh families are suffering for over a year. Two orders by the apex court clearly state that non-payment of wages to MGNREGS workers amounts to forced labour and violates Article 23 of the Constitution," the TMC lawmaker said.</p>.<p>As many as 151 central teams have been sent to Bengal in the past two years and the state government has submitted action-taken reports. "Yet the allocation for 2023-24 stands at zero," she said. Senior TMC leader and state minister Partha Bhowmick blamed the West Bengal BJP for harming Bengal's interests. "When Mamata Banerjee was railway minister, she brought various projects to West Bengal. She did not worry whether the Left regime then would benefit from them. But the BJP MPs only prioritise power and politics. Elected BJP representatives from Bengal are not following their constitutional obligation of working for the people and are instead going to ministries in Delhi to ask them to block funds to the state," he claimed.</p>.<p>Reacting to TMC's allegations, BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya criticised the ruling party for "spreading lies" about the Centre not releasing MNREGS funds. The Bengal government had not given the expenditure details of MGNREGS funds for the last three years, he said. "The MGNREGS funds have been stopped as the TMC dispensation has failed to submit the necessary documents. West Bengal has stopped submitting utilisation certificates. Let it first submit it for the funds it received earlier. The state will then start getting the MGNREGS funds again," Bhattacharya added.</p>
<p>The TMC on Thursday slammed the union government for withholding MNREGS funds due to the state and asked Home Minister Amit Shah to clarify the Centre's stand during his impending visit. Depriving the poor of their dues is tantamount to forced labour and a violation of constitutional norms, TMC MP Mahua Moitra said. The BJP hit back saying the Bengal government has not given the details of expenditure for the scheme during the past three years.</p>.<p>Trinamool Congress and West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee have criticised the Centre repeatedly for withholding the state's MGNREGS funds. Referring to Shah's scheduled two-day visit to the state from Friday, Moitra said he has to answer why the poor engaged in the 100 days work scheme have not received their dues despite working under a central scheme.</p>.<p><strong>Also Read | <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/national/east-and-northeast/tmc-will-soon-cease-to-be-even-a-state-party-suvendu-adhikari-1209045.html" target="_blank">TMC will soon cease to be even a state party: Suvendu Adhikari</a></strong><br /><br />"When you come here as a leader of the BJP which is governing at the Centre, you have to answer why our workers have not been paid despite working under the 100 days' work scheme. MGNREGS was set up with one idea – that the poorest of the poor have at least 100 days of guaranteed employment. The Government of India gives the guarantee. "The law also states that if any wage earner does not receive his/her wage within 15 days, the person is entitled to compensation," Moitra said.</p>.<p>She said Bengal has been denied Rs 7,500 crore in MGNREGS payments since December 2021. Of this, Rs 2,800 crore is for payment of wages. "As a result, 17 lakh families are suffering for over a year. Two orders by the apex court clearly state that non-payment of wages to MGNREGS workers amounts to forced labour and violates Article 23 of the Constitution," the TMC lawmaker said.</p>.<p>As many as 151 central teams have been sent to Bengal in the past two years and the state government has submitted action-taken reports. "Yet the allocation for 2023-24 stands at zero," she said. Senior TMC leader and state minister Partha Bhowmick blamed the West Bengal BJP for harming Bengal's interests. "When Mamata Banerjee was railway minister, she brought various projects to West Bengal. She did not worry whether the Left regime then would benefit from them. But the BJP MPs only prioritise power and politics. Elected BJP representatives from Bengal are not following their constitutional obligation of working for the people and are instead going to ministries in Delhi to ask them to block funds to the state," he claimed.</p>.<p>Reacting to TMC's allegations, BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya criticised the ruling party for "spreading lies" about the Centre not releasing MNREGS funds. The Bengal government had not given the expenditure details of MGNREGS funds for the last three years, he said. "The MGNREGS funds have been stopped as the TMC dispensation has failed to submit the necessary documents. West Bengal has stopped submitting utilisation certificates. Let it first submit it for the funds it received earlier. The state will then start getting the MGNREGS funds again," Bhattacharya added.</p>