In a significant ruling that could provide much-needed relief to rural workers in West Bengal, the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the Central government's special leave petition (SLP) challenging a Calcutta High Court directive to restart the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme in the state. The apex court's decision ends a nearly four-year standoff, allowing the 100-day rural job guarantee program to resume and underscoring that administrative disputes should not penalise vulnerable labourers.
The bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, took a firm stance during the hearing, reportedly questioning the Centre's representatives. “We are not convinced that the order requires any interference,” said the bench as the court dismissed the appeal after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre alleged that the scheme shouldn’t be resumed since there is ‘corruption’. The court upheld the High Court's June 18 order, which mandated the resumption of MGNREGA works from August 1, 2025, while emphasising safeguards against any potential misuse of funds. This comes after the scheme was abruptly halted in April 2022 amid allegations of irregularities in fund utilisation by the state government, leading to widespread criticism from West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) of political vendetta by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Union administration.
The Calcutta High Court on June 18, 2025, had passed the order in a matter on the non-payment of dues to daily wage labourers under the MGNREGA scheme. The High Court had observed that the irregularities in payment cannot be a ground to put on hold the scheme for eternity. While allowing the Centre to continue its inquiry into the allegations of ‘embezzlement’, the Calcutta High Court had directed it to resume it from August 1, 2025. "The scheme of the act does not envisage a situation where it would be put to cold storage for eternity. The central government has sufficient means to enquire into the irregularity in the disbursement of wages...however, there can be a line drawn between past actions and future steps to be taken for implementation. This in the opinion of this court, would be in the public interest and subserve the interest in which the act was enacted. Therefor,e while allowing the central government to proceed with their enquiry, this court directs that the scheme be implemented prospectively from 1st August 2025," the High Court observed. Undeterred, the Centre filed an SLP in August, arguing that resuming the scheme without resolving utilisation discrepancies could lead to further financial leakages.
West Bengal government has consistently maintained that while they are not against any inquiry by any agency but to put a blanket stall on the scheme, penalises holistically everyone, including those who have committed no wrong or been party to any wrong. The TMC has maintained that since the election debacle of BJP in 2021 state polls, they had gone vindictive and tried harming the people who chose TMC over the saffron party.
The suspension of MGNREGA in West Bengal - a flagship program promising at least 100 days of wage employment to rural households, has left millions of daily wage earners in limbo, exacerbating unemployment in one of India's most populous states. Critics, including Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, have long accused the Centre of withholding over Rs 1.16 lakh crore in dues as a punitive measure, turning the issue into a flashpoint ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha polls. In response, the state launched its own 50-day job guarantee initiative in 2024.
