4th day of MP Assembly: Labour (Amendment) Bill passed; Congress protests against 'drug' menace

Bhopal, July 31 The fourth day of the Monsoon session of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly, on Thursday, witnessed a healthy discussion on various issues, allegations, and counter-allegations from the legislators from the ruling BJP and Opposition Congress.

The Labour (Amendment) Bill 2025, which was tabled by the State Panchayat and Rural Development Minister Prahlad Patel on Wednesday, was passed on Thursday following a heated discussion between BJP and Congress MLAs.

The Bill approved with the aim of reforming industrial laws and making it mandatory for industry management to issue a one-and-a-half-month notice before declaring a strike or initiating a lockout witnessed heated discussion in the House.

While the ruling BJP said the law will benefit both workers and industries, the Opposition Congress has called it a step towards further exploitation of workers.

During the discussion, Congress MLAs vehemently opposed the Bill, alleging it curtails the basic rights of workers to strike and protest.

They claimed that the law is skewed in favour of capitalists and contractors, promoting a contract-based employment system that undermines labour rights.

During the House proceedings, the State's Urban Affairs Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya put forth a proposal for expansion of rail metro connectivity for discussion.

Veteran Congress MLA and former Chief Minister Kamal Nath told the House on how Indore and Bhopal's rail metro projects were started.

"When I was the Union Minister, I had allocated Rs 15 crore to the Madhya Pradesh government to prepare a detailed project report for the rail metro project in the state. Luckily, when I became the Chief Minister in 2018, I laid down the foundation of the project in Indore. And I feel proud for this," Nath said.

Leader of Opposition (LoP) Umang Singhar and several other Congress MLAs raised the issue of 'drug mafia' in the Assembly.

Congress alleged that drug peddlers have spread in the entire state in such a manner that it "looks like a government scheme".

Before the House began on Friday, Congress MLAs, carrying drug-like packets and even a garland of injections, held a protest at the Assembly premises.

When asked about their party's moto, the Congress MLAs accused the Madhya Pradesh-led BJP government of promoting 'drug mafia' in the entire state.

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