Opposition slams Ladki Bahin Yojana after Gadkari hints at Maharashtra’s ‘fiscal strain’

The scheme provides ₹1,500 a month to married, divorced, and destitute women aged 21 to 65, with an annual family income cap of ₹2.5 lakh. It is projected to cost the State ₹46,000 crore a year.

Union Minister Nitin Gadkari’s comments about the potential financial strain caused by Maharashtra’s flagship scheme, ‘Ladki Bahin Yoajan’, have fuelled criticism from the Opposition, with leaders from the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party (SP) and Shiv Sena (UBT), raising concerns over the State’s financial stability.

Mr. Gadkari hinted that the scheme, aimed at providing financial aid to women, could strain the government’s ability to pay subsidies in other sectors. “It is uncertain whether investors will receive their subsidy payment on time, as the government also has to allocate funds for the Ladki Bahin scheme… If you are getting a subsidy, take it but again it is not sure when you will get the subsidy. With the Ladki Bahin Yojana being started, they have to use the funds, allocated for the subsidy, for that work,” he said while addressing a public event in Nagpur on Sunday.

The Mukhya Mantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana, a recently launched scheme of the State government provides ₹1,500 per month to married, divorced, and destitute women aged 21 to 65, with a family income cap of ₹2.5 lakh annually. The scheme, introduced ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections, is projected to cost the State ₹46,000 crore annually.

The Opposition was quick to respond to the BJP leader’s comments with NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule and Sena (UBT) Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Raut expressing deep concern over the State’s financial health.

“If even those within the government, like Mr. Gadkari, are pointing out that Maharashtra’s economy is in distress, it is a matter of grave concern,” she said in Pune on Monday. The Baramati MP pointed out that both economists and leaders, including MNS chief Raj Thackeray, have been consistently warning about the financial distress.

Also read | Oppn. spreading rumours about ‘Ladki Bahin’, says CM Eknath Shinde

Ms. Sule further said that her party colleague, NCP (SP) State chief Jayant Patil and a former State Finance Minister, had raised similar concerns earlier, but they had been ignored by the government. “The Finance Department often raises objections or makes recommendations, but no one listens. Instead, decisions are forced through the Cabinet,” she said.

Mr. Raut weighed in and said, “Mr. Gadkari has made an important point. If funds are being mismanaged and diverted from essential schemes, what responsibility does the Union government hold regarding the State’s financial plans?”

Last week, BJP MLA Tekchand Sawarkar called the scheme a ‘jugaad’ (ploy) to secure votes from women, adding to the controversy surrounding the programme.

The Opposition has intensified its criticism of the ruling government, accusing it of fiscal mismanagement and failing to prioritise the State’s economic stability in the lead-up to the elections.

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh called the scheme a desperate political ploy aimed at salvaging diminishing electoral fortunes following MahaYuti’s poor performance in the Lok Sabha elections.

Terming the current dispensation ‘Khokhe Sarkar’ (allegedly referring to corruption in the government), he accused it of launching the scheme without considering the financial health of the State. “This is purely a political manoeuvre, lacking in foresight and concern for the fiscal future of Maharashtra,” he said.

Mr. Ramesh described the current government as a “government of horse-trading and backroom politics” and said it lacks both public legitimacy and governance capability, suggesting the alliance is built on shared interests in “looting” the State’s resources.

“The MahaYuti has overseen a period where Maharashtra, once a leading state, has fallen behind other top-performing states,” the former Union Minister added.

Published - September 30, 2024 02:34 pm IST