‘Scheme to buy votes’: Opposition targets Maharashtra govt after report highlights irregularities in Ladki Bahin Yojana

Congress MLA Vijay Wadettiwar criticised the government, stating that the scheme was introduced with the Assembly polls in mind, and once the civic body polls are over, the scheme will be scrapped.

“The state government introduced the Ladki Bahin scheme ahead of the Assembly elections to influence voters. Funds were distributed indiscriminately, but now irregularities have come to light. Men were among the beneficiaries,” said Wadettiwar.

“Earlier, there was no transparency in the scheme. The government is now imposing arbitrary conditions. The scheme will likely be discontinued after municipal and district council elections. No matter what ministers say, the scheme will be stopped.”

The Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) posted on X, “Schemes launched just to lure votes and their implementation are two different things. This shabby, mismanaged government is good only at announcements and publicity. What else can one expect from leaders who introduce such schemes before elections to cover up vote manipulation?”

Nationalist Congress Party (SP) spokesperson Clyde Crasto demanded a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the matter.

“Hilarious chicanery! The BJP-led Maharashtra government tried to turn brothers into sisters to garner votes but now stands exposed. This shows that the scheme was a well-orchestrated plan to lure and trick people of Maharashtra to vote for them. As more skeletons tumble out of the Ladki Bahin closet, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis must take full responsibility and set up a SIT to investigate these irregularities and explain the facts to the people of Maharashtra.”

Shiv Sena leader Aaditya Thackeray also questioned the government’s conduct and questioned if such irregularities can take place without the use of government machinery.

“The news of a Rs 164 crore misappropriation through bogus beneficiaries in the Ladki Bahin scheme has come out right before Diwali. Could this have happened without the use of government machinery and political backing? The government has a long-standing habit of diverting public funds under the guise of welfare,” said Thackeray.

“The same continues in the Mumbai municipal elections. Meanwhile, farmers and citizens remain unsupported. Promises of aid for flood-affected farmers before Diwali have not been fulfilled. But the government must remember—the public sees everything and remembers it.”

The Congress also posted on X by tagging the Indian Express report.
“BJP introduced a scheme to buy votes before the election, distributing Rs 165 crore to ineligible beneficiaries. This is not welfare, it’s electoral manipulation. The people of Maharashtra are watching, and the lesson will be learned.”

What RTI response found

Responding to RTI queries from The Indian Express, the Women and Child Development (WCD) Department, which runs the scheme, stated that men have been removed from the list of beneficiaries, following verification, along with 77,980 women who were also identified as ineligible.

In all, the RTI response shows that 12,431 men and 77,980 women were wrongly disbursed Rs 1,500 for 13 months and 12 months, respectively, under the scheme — this works out to around Rs 24.24 crore for men, about Rs 140.28 crore for women, and at least Rs 164.52 crore overall.

The scheme was launched in June 2024, four months before the Assembly elections. In August 2024, the government announced an outlay of Rs 199.81 crore for the scheme’s publicity campaign.