After Ajit Pawar states on Ladki Behen Yojna, Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut claims funds given out without verifying applications; actual number of beneficiaries of scheme was pegged to be 2.461 crore women in the state
(From left) CM Devendra Fadnavis, Dy CMs Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar. File Pic/Shadab Khan
Maharashtra government’s flagship scheme, Majhi Ladki Bahin, is under scrutiny for giving financial assistance to beneficiaries without verifying the received applications.
Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and MP Sanjay Raut, who accused the government of using the scheme to woo voters, claimed that the funds were given without verifying the applications, merely to win votes. On Monday, Raut blamed Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar for the lapses.
Responding to the charges, Ajit Pawar accepted that some ineligible people received the money. However, he refuted the charges of him being responsible for the goof-up. “How am I responsible for this? During elections, there was not enough time for verification. We are currently reviewing documents and removing ineligible individuals from the list,” Pawar clarified.
In 2024, ahead of the Assembly polls, the Mahayuti government (Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-headed NCP) announced the Ladki Bahin scheme, under which needy and poor women will be getting monthly Rs 1500 monetary assistance from the government. But, post-elections, when the government began scrutiny of documents, it observed that many ineligible women, too, have been taking advantage of the scheme.
During the state Assembly poll campaign, the Maha Vikas Aghadi — comprising the Congress, Sharad Pawar-led NCP and Shiv Sena (UBT) — promised to raise the amount to R3000 if voted to power. In response, Mahayuti pledged to increase the amount to R2100.
However, in the state budget presented on March 10, the government reduced the allocation. Ahead of the Assembly polls (held in November 2024), the government had maintained that the welfare scheme would cost the exchequer R46,000 crore, but in the budget, an allocation of R36,000 crore was made for the financial year 2025-26.
Earlier in February, the actual number of beneficiaries of the scheme was pegged to be 2.461 crore women. But, after scrutinising the numbers, the number of beneficiaries dropped to 2.41 crore, marking a reduction of approximately five lakh women, who no longer meet the eligibility criteria.
Women and Child Development Minister Aditi Tatkare in February, through a post on X, made it public that over 1.60 lakh women, whose families own four-wheelers, have been excluded from the benefits of the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana.
Criteria for Ladki Bahin applicants
Women in the age group of 21 to 65 from families with an annual income below R2.5 lakh are eligible for the scheme. However, those who have a family member who is an income taxpayer, a permanent government employee or a pensioner, or those receiving benefits from other government financial schemes, are ineligible. Additionally, women from families that own a four-wheeler (except a tractor) do not qualify for the scheme.
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