BJP sweeps Madhya Pradesh polls with 'Ladli Behna Yojana'; here's everything you need to know

The Bharatiya Janata Party has swept the Madhya Pradesh polls. The party has overcome all the prediction of anti-incumbency that was on rise due to unemployment and elevated inflation. This is how BJP successfully rode this anti-incumbency wave landing safely on the shore.

Its strategy to target the women voters has paid off well. Notably, out of the 5.6 crore voters in Madhya Pradesh, 2.7 crore are women. Similarly, out of the 230 assembly constituencies, women outnumber men in 29.

Reacting to the early trends of the poll result, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan highlighted the 'Ladli Behna Yojana' scheme's role for the landslide victory. "I had said BJP will get a comfortable majority and we are getting it. I give the whole credit to Ladli Behnas for this impressive performance", Shivraj said.

Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia too lauded the scheme, calling it a game changer. "I express my gratitude to every single person of the state. This is the result of the BJP's double engine government, PM Modi's leadership, guidance of Union Home Minister Amit Shahji, and party president JP Naddaji, and welfare schemes implemented by CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan...Ladli Behna scheme is a game-changer and the full credit for it goes to Shivraj Singh Chouhan," Scindia said

Ladli Behna Yojana

BJP had set the stage for the assembly elections early in March. Madhya Pradesh's Finance Minister Jadgish Devda introduced the 'Ladli Behna Yojana' in his 2023 Budget speech. The government had allocated Rs 8,000 crore for the scheme. Under this welfare scheme about 12 million women would receive Rs 1,000 every month which will be progressively raised to Rs 3,000. The amount would be credited on the 10th of every month.

“This scheme has been started with Rs 1,000 per month, but I will not give only one thousand. The amount will increase gradually,” Chouhan said. “I will increase it to Rs 1,200 per month and Rs 1,500 per month. As soon as the money is arranged in the coming year, I will increase it to Rs 3,000 per month”, he added.

As per Moneycontrol, this was seen as a smart counter-attack against the Congress’s poll guarantee of providing Rs 1,500 per month to women if voted to power. The process of accepting the application for the scheme began on 5th March 2023 - Shivraj Singh Chouhan's 65th birthday. While launching the scheme, Chouhan urged women to strengthen their families with the money they got through the program. Women began to get the benefits of the scheme from June 10.

Eligibility criteria

Women aged between 23 and 60 years who have less than 5 acres of land or an annual income of less than Rs 2.5 lakhs are eligible to get the benefits of Laadli Behna yojana. They also must be a resident of Madhya Pradesh.

For easy application, the government also formed groups to reach women in every village and ward. Shivraj Singh Chouhan via a post in X (formerly Twitter) mentioned that a team of employees will visit every village and ward of the state and will help the women to fill up the form and there is no need to wander anywhere. For this year, the application closed on April 30

मुख्यमंत्री लाड़ली बहना योजना का लाभ लेने के लिए बहनों को कहीं भटकने की आवश्यकता नहीं है। प्रत्येक गाँव तथा वार्ड में कर्मचारियों की टीम आएगी और वहीं बैठकर आपका फॉर्म भरवाया जाएगा।:सीएम श्री @ChouhanShivraj pic.twitter.com/mrA34ntAWF

— Office of Shivraj (@OfficeofSSC) March 4, 2023