Row Over Women's Scheme In Karnataka Assembly: BJP Alleges Rs 5,000 Crore Scam

A heated confrontation over Karnataka's flagship Gruha Lakshmi welfare scheme brought proceedings in the state assembly to a standstill on Wednesday, with the opposition BJP staging a walkout after accusing the Congress government of failing to disburse two months' payments and demanding answers over what it alleged could amount to a Rs 5,000 crore lapse.

The Gruha Lakshmi scheme, one of the five key guarantees rolled out by the Congress after coming to power in 2023, promises a monthly assistance of Rs 2,000 to women heads of Below Poverty Line (BPL) households. According to official figures, the programme covers around 1.26 crore beneficiaries across the state and is delivered through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).

The controversy erupted after BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai raised concerns on the floor of the House that instalments for February and March this year had not been credited to beneficiaries' accounts. In response, Women and Child Welfare Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar initially told the assembly that all payments under the scheme had been made up to August.

Following questioning by the opposition, the minister later acknowledged that two monthly instalments had indeed been missed, triggering sharp protests from BJP legislators and leading to repeated disruptions of the session.

BJP leaders accused the minister of misleading the House.

"The minister avoided a direct answer and shifted her stand repeatedly," BJP MLA Bharat Shetty said. "We are talking about Rs 2,000 per beneficiary for around 1.26 crore women. That comes to roughly Rs 2,500 crore per month. For two months, it is close to Rs 5,000 crore. We want to know where this money has gone."

 "Four days is enough time for any minister to get details from the finance department. Coming to the House with an apology instead of an answer is not acceptable," he added. 

BJP members repeatedly entered the well of the House, raising slogans, forcing the Speaker to adjourn proceedings for over an hour. 

Hebbalkar firmly rejected the BJP's allegation that the lapse amounted to a scam, calling the charge "laughable". 

"This is money sent directly to beneficiaries' bank accounts," she said. "There are no middlemen involved. How can there suddenly be a scam in a DBT-based scheme that is being discussed and appreciated across the country?"

The minister said that 23 instalments had already been paid under the programme and that nearly 1.26 crore women had benefited so far. 

Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar came to the minister's defence, turning the spotlight on what he described as the Centre's failure to honour its own commitments to Karnataka. He cited the Union Budget announcement of Rs 5,300 crore for the Upper Bhadra Irrigation Project, alleging that the funds had not been released despite the allocation.

"You should question that lie as well," Shivakumar said.