MUMBAI: A controversy has erupted involving the Maharashtra government’s ‘Ladli Behna Yojana’ following a remark by MLA Ravin Rana that if “sisters” refuse to vote for the BJP in the assembly elections due this year, then the government would take back Rs 1,500 (promised under the scheme) from each of such eligible women after the polls. Ravin Rana is BJP leader Navneet Rana’s husband.
The scheme was announced barely a few months ahead of the Assembly polls. The ruling Mahayuti government earmarked Rs 25,000 crore for the mega largesse.
Ravin Rana’s remark came in Amarawati while he was distributing certificates of this scheme. He told the gathered women that if they failed to give him ‘ashiward’ (‘blessings’ literally and ‘votes’ metaphorically) in the elections, then the government would take back the given amount.
He said if the government returned to power, then the government would increase the amount from Rs 1,500 to Rs 3,000 under the scheme. But if “sisters” failed to vote for him, then he would withdraw the amount, he made it clear.