One crore women's assistance stalled due to budget deficit

The Karnataka Congress government has informed the High Court that due to financial constraints, two months of payments under its flagship 'Gruha Lakshmi' scheme have been withheld during 2025. Due to this situation, a total of ₹4,000 crore is owed to approximately one crore women. According to an India Today report, eligible female heads of households are promised monthly assistance of ₹2,000 under this scheme. For the pending installments of February and March 2025, each beneficiary is owed ₹4,000.

In response to a writ petition filed in court, the government stated that proposals for both months had been submitted to the Finance Department, but the grants were withheld due to budget constraints. The state government argued that the assistance under this scheme is based on budget allocation and cannot be claimed as a legally enforceable right. The government further added that when actual financial difficulties arise, beneficiaries cannot rely solely on the principle of 'legitimate expectation', which implies the expectation that the government will fulfill its promise of continuous payments.

The government has requested the Karnataka High Court to dismiss the petition against the scheme. This scheme was launched on 30 August, 2023. The scheme is currently facing other controversies as well. Due to audit observations related to the CAG review in June, BJP leaders had demanded a wide-ranging investigation into duplicate payments, ineligible beneficiaries, and flaws in verification. Facing these criticisms, the Karnataka government provided a detailed clarification, rejecting claims of large-scale fraud.

However, the Department of Women and Child Development admitted that ₹115 crore was transferred to the accounts of deceased beneficiaries. The department blamed delays in obtaining and updating death records for this payment. The department stated that recovery proceedings have been initiated and ₹15.24 crore has been recovered at the time of clarification. The department also said that payments were made through a database-driven payment system, which checked eligibility by excluding income taxpayers, GST filers, and deceased beneficiaries. Denying allegations of duplicate transfers, the government said the system does not allow a beneficiary to receive assistance in more than one account in a single month. According to the government, the ongoing verification process aims to identify ineligible beneficiaries and prevent misuse without affecting eligible women.

The Gruha Lakshmi scheme is a significant scheme of the Karnataka government, launched for the economic empowerment of women. Under this scheme, monthly financial assistance is provided to women identified as heads of households.