Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on friday met with political party leaders and Members of Parliament in his chamber at Parliament House following the conclusion of the Winter Session of Parliament 2025. Amid opposition protests over the passage of the VB-G RAM G Bill, the Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die after the playing of “Vande Mataram,” with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who returned from a three-nation visit yesterday, in attendance.

In the Rajya Sabha, Chairman and Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan adjourned the Upper House shortly after it resumed at 11 am. Before the adjournment, several statements and reports were laid on the table. While adjourning the House sine die, Radhakrishnan criticized members’ conduct during the Minister’s reply the previous day, noting that protesting and tearing papers was “unbecoming of the House.” The opposition continued to voice strong objections to the VB-G RAM G Bill. On Friday, they held a joint protest outside Parliament, while Trinamool Congress members staged a demonstration at the entrance steps of the Lok Sabha.

Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, currently in Germany, also criticized the Bill, calling it “anti-state” and “anti-village” in nature. He stated that the Modi government had effectively dismantled two decades of MGNREGA in a single day. According to Gandhi, VB-G RAM G does not merely revamp MGNREGA but transforms the rights-based, demand-driven scheme into a rationed program controlled from Delhi.

Gandhi emphasized that MGNREGA had empowered rural workers, improved wages, reduced exploitation and distress migration, and strengthened rural livelihoods and infrastructure. He added that the VB-G RAM G Bill weakens this crucial support system. Highlighting MGNREGA’s impact during the COVID-19 pandemic, Gandhi noted that it prevented millions from falling into hunger and debt, particularly benefiting women, who have consistently contributed more than half of the workdays under the program.