A division bench of Calcutta High Court on Wednesday directed the Centre to resume the 100 days' job scheme under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA)in Bengal from August 1.
The Narendra Modi government had withheld funds to Bengal under the scheme since December 2021, alleging irregularities such as public money siphoned through fake job cards.
"Only because of certain irregularities, the allotment of funds of a particular scheme cannot be sent to cold storage for years," the division bench comprising Chief Justice T.S. Sivagnanam and Justice Chaitali Chatterjee Das said in their order.
However, the bench gave liberty to the Centre to impose any restriction, regulation or condition on the state in this regard. The order clarified that this ruling applies only to Bengal and not to other states.
The Centre may also transfer the funds directly to the beneficiaries’ accounts, the court stated.
"As some apples were found rotten, the other apples cannot be deprived of their legitimate claims," the bench remarked, while giving the Centre the freedom to conduct probes across the state and recover any illegally disbursed amounts.
Following multiple complaints lodged with the Union rural development ministry accusing the Bengal administration of malpractice, the Narendra Modi government sent over 20 central teams to investigate the anomalies since December 2021. The probe revealed significant irregularities across multiple districts. Subsequently, the Centre ordered the state government to recover the siphoned-off funds and initiate police action against those involved in the alleged malpractice.
While the scheme remained suspended in the state, the Bengal government lodged FIRs against a few panchayat functionaries to recover the money. Sources said it was far less than the quantum of the irregularity. The money recovered amounted to only a few crores and could not satisfy the Modi government. It continued to withhold funds.
Ahead of the 2024 general elections, the ruling TMC turned the issue of central deprivation into a political weapon against the BJP in Bengal. Around 3,000 workers under the scheme, whose wages were pending, were taken to Delhi for a protest led by TMC national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee.
The Mamata Banerjee-led government cleared all due wages of 21 lakh workers from the state’s exchequer — a move that many in the TMC saw as a masterstroke that contributed to the party winning 29 seats in 2024 general election.
A section of BJP leaders in Bengal believed that charges of central deprivation helped the TMC gain electoral advantage in rural areas.
Although the court has now ordered the resumption of the scheme’s implementation in Bengal — with the Centre retaining the authority to probe irregularities and control fund distribution — it raises questions about whether the TMC can still capitalise on the narrative of central deprivation for political gain.
The order came in response to a petition filed by the West Bengal Kshet Majdoor Samiti, an organisation representing daily labourers, who alleged that they were not receiving their wages despite having worked under the 100 days’ scheme.
State advocate general Kishore Datta said the central government had stopped disbursing funds to the state for the last few years. "As a result, the common people of the state have been deprived of the benefit of the scheme," he said.
Additional solicitor-general Ashoke Chakrabarty, however, countered that after some irregularities were found, the Centre stopped disbursing funds under the scheme.
"The state has failed to furnish proper audit reports about the money spent under the scheme. Investigation in four districts revealed that huge funds were hushed up by opening fictitious accounts in the names of fictitious persons," the ASG claimed.
Responding to Tuesday's ruling, chief minister Mamata Banerjee said her government would review the high court’s order on the 100 days’ work scheme but also demanded that the Centre release the funds withheld for over three years.
"We welcome the high court judgment. Though we didn’t approach the court, an organisation did. From the government’s side, we will seek a review because we want the arrears for the past financial years when no funds were allotted to Bengal," Mamata said, indicating that the TMC would continue to pressure the Centre to release the withheld funds.
BJP leaders said that although they welcomed the court’s verdict, they believed implementation would be easier said than done.
"We also want the resumption of the 100 days' work in Bengal. But with due respect to the judgment, we doubt whether it will be implemented. The central government had clearly instructed the state to recover all siphoned-off money and take legal action against those responsible. If the Bengal government had taken action earlier, such a crisis could have been avoided," said BJP Rajya Sabha MP Samik Bhattacharya.