CHANDIGARH: Hitting out at national convener of AAP and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, Union Minister of State Ravneet Singh Bittu today said his party failed to fulfil its poll promise of giving Rs 1,000 to every woman in Punjab and is now peddling a similar falsehood in Delhi ahead of elections.
Bittu alleged that Kejriwal has a proven track record of deception and further said that his empty promises are not worth the risk. "The AAP government in Punjab has not yet provided Rs 1,000 per month to women, a promise made by the party before the 2022 assembly elections. Kejriwal’s promise of Rs 1,000 to every woman in Punjab in 2022 was a blatant lie, a deceitful tactic to lure voters. Three years have passed and the women of Punjab are still waiting for this promised financial support,” Bittu posted on X.
He alleged, "Now, he’s at it again, peddling a similar falsehood in Delhi, promising Rs 2,100 to the women of Delhi. This is nothing but a treacherous attempt to manipulate voters once more. I request the voters of Delhi: do not trust Kejriwal. He has a proven track record of deception, and his empty promises are not worth the risk. The women of Punjab have already fallen victim to his false assurances; don’t let the women of Delhi suffer the same fate.’’
In its budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year, the Delhi government announced a scheme to provide Rs 1,000 per month to all adult women. However, Kejriwal recently announced that the amount would be raised to Rs 2,100 if his party returns to power for a third consecutive term after the upcoming Delhi assembly elections.
Before the 2022 Assembly elections, AAP had pledged to provide Rs 1,000 monthly to women in Punjab. Despite implementing 300 units of free electricity within three months of forming the government, the state’s precarious financial condition has made fulfilling the Rs 1,000 promise challenging. The electricity subsidy alone has caused the state’s power subsidy bill to soar to Rs 23,000 crore this fiscal year.
In May this year, the Mann government said they would give Rs 1,100 to women instead of Rs 1,000 per month. However, in the state budget of 2024-25, no funds were allocated for the scheme. Mann had earlier said his government would redirect funds from other schemes for the payment but nothing concrete has taken shape so far.
"It is not that we have forgotten this guarantee, for every scheme that a government implements, a lot of planning is done. The work is underway and very soon, women will start getting the money. We have already fulfilled four guarantees even before completing two years, ‘’ said a party leader.