Oppn accuses Mahayuti of diverting funds to 'Ladki Bahin' scheme for poll gains

Mumbai, Sep 30 (IANS) The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) allies on Monday launched a fresh attack on the ruling Mahayuti alliance alleging that it was diverting money from development schemes and ongoing projects to fund the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme for gains in the upcoming Maharashtra Assembly elections.

Interestingly, BJP’s Union Minister Nitin Gadkari also referred to the issue recently, saying that uncertainty looms over funds for other schemes as the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme also has to be provided with money, sparking speculation in political circles.

On Monday, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Leader of Opposition Ambadas Danve and MP Sanjay Raut, besides Nationalist Congress Party (SP) Working President Supriya Sule slammed the government for feeding the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme while starving other projects of funds despite purported objections from the state’s finance department.

Raut accused the Mahayuti of halting other ongoing schemes to fund ‘Ladki Bahin’, which could hit the salaries of state government employees, police or home guards.

Sule said that the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme has attracted flak from the finance department, and even the Bharatiya Janata Party’s former supporter, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) President, Raj Thackeray, and it is being pushed through with an eye on the elections.

Danve claimed that the government’s resources for important projects were being routed to the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme to lure women’s votes in the Assembly polls despite objections from many quarters.

Raj Thackeray warned a couple of days ago that the scheme would exhaust the state exchequer by January 2025, which could affect the salaries of state government staffers.

Earlier, NCP(SP) President Sharad Pawar had frowned at the scheme, Congress President Nana Patole and the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA) President Prakash Ambedkar also raised questions on the political intentions behind the scheme in view of the state’s financial condition.

Raut said while similar schemes were implemented even in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, the Mahayuti has launched ‘Ladki Bahin’ in Maharashtra solely to bag women’s votes in the upcoming state polls, and there is a competition among the ruling allies Shiv Sena-BJP-Nationalist Congress Party to grab credit for it.

Nevertheless, CM Eknath Shinde and Deputy CM and Finance Minister Ajit Pawar had stoutly refuted the allegations, countering them by saying that the Opposition is worried over its prospects after the massive response to the ‘Ladki Bahin’ scheme.