Union minister Nitin Gadkari has said the Maharashtra government's Ladki Bahin scheme, introduced to provide financial assistance to women, could affect the timely payment of subsidies in other sectors.
Latching onto the Bharatiya Janata Party leader's comments, the opposition Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar and Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray said if those in the government were saying the state's economy is in distress, then it is a matter of concern.
Under the state government's flagship 'Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana', married, divorced, and destitute women aged 21-65 will receive Rs 1,500 per month, with the annual family income of beneficiaries capped at Rs 2.5 lakh.
The scheme, introduced ahead of the upcoming Maharashtra assembly polls, is expected to cost the state exchequer Rs 46,000 crore annually.
Addressing a public event in Maharashtra's Nagpur on Sunday, Gadkari said, "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."
He said the entrepreneurs in Vidarbha (region of Maharashtra) should come forward for investment as everything cannot be left to the government.
"My opinion is that irrespective of the government, belonging to any party, keep the government at bay. Government is like a 'vishkanya' (poison maiden) as whosoever it goes along with, it will doom them. So do not get into that matter," he said in a lighter vein.
"If you are getting a subsidy, take it but again it is not sure when will (one) get the subsidy. With the Ladki Bahin Yojana being started, they have to use the funds, allocated for subsidy, for that work," Gadkari said.
This has provided fresh ammunition to the opposition parties, which have been critical of the scheme on the grounds that the ruling dispensation is not following fiscal discipline.
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Shiv Sena-UBT MP Sanjay Raut said, "Gadkari made a pertinent statement about this issue. If there is misuse and mismanagement of funds at a time when the treasury is lacking funds and the government is suspending other schemes, does the Union government have some responsibility (regarding the state's plan)?"
Notably, BJP MLA Tekchand Sawarkar last week called the Ladki Bahin scheme a 'jugaad' (ploy) to garner women's votes.
Latching onto Gadkari's comments, NCP-SP MP Supriya Sule expressed concern over the state's economic situation.
Talking to reporters in Pune, she said those in the government and economists have been consistently saying the state is in a financial difficulty.
Be it Gadkari, the statements by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena chief Raj Thackeray and economists, the people in the government, those close to the government and those who are neutral, they are consistently saying the state's economy is in distress.
"If people within the government are saying that the economic state of Maharashtra is in distress, then it is a matter of worry," she said.
Sule maintained that NCP-SP state chief Jayant Patil had been saying the same thing but no cognisance of it was taken.
"Besides, the finance department when it objects or provides the recommendation, nobody listens, in fact, decisions are forcefully implemented in the cabinet," she claimed.
