Proceedings in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly were disrupted on Wednesday following a heated face-off between the ruling Congress and the opposition BJP over the state government’s flagship Gruha Lakshmi welfare scheme. The BJP staged a walkout, accusing the government of failing to disburse two months of payments to beneficiaries and demanding clarity on what it claimed could amount to a lapse of nearly Rs 5,000 crore.
The Gruha Lakshmi scheme, one of the five key guarantees announced by the Congress after assuming power in 2023, provides a monthly assistance of Rs 2,000 to women heads of Below Poverty Line (BPL) households. According to official data, the scheme covers around 1.26 crore women across Karnataka and is implemented through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
The controversy erupted when BJP MLA Mahesh Tenginkai raised the issue in the Assembly, alleging that instalments for February and March had not been credited to beneficiaries’ bank accounts. Responding to the query, Women and Child Welfare Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar initially told the House that payments under the scheme had been made up to August.
However, under sustained questioning from opposition members, the minister later acknowledged that two monthly instalments had indeed been missed. This admission triggered loud protests from BJP legislators, who accused the government of misleading the Assembly and demanded an explanation for the delay.
BJP MLA Bharat Shetty said the issue involved a massive financial outlay. “Each beneficiary is entitled to Rs 2,000 per month. With about 1.26 crore women covered, the monthly expenditure is roughly Rs 2,500 crore. For two months, that comes close to Rs 5,000 crore. We want to know where this money has gone,” he said.
Shetty further criticised the minister for not coming prepared with details. “Four days is enough time for any minister to get information from the finance department. Coming to the House with an apology instead of answers is unacceptable,” he added.
As BJP members repeatedly entered the well of the House and raised slogans, the Speaker was forced to adjourn proceedings for over an hour. Following the disruption, the BJP staged a walkout.
Minister Lakshmi Hebbalkar rejected allegations of any wrongdoing, dismissing the opposition’s claims as baseless. “This is a DBT-based scheme where money is transferred directly into beneficiaries’ bank accounts. There are no middlemen. How can there be a scam in such a system?” she asked. She also said that 23 instalments had already been paid under the scheme and that nearly 1.26 crore women had benefited so far.
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar came to the minister’s defence and countered the BJP’s allegations by pointing to what he described as the Centre’s failure to release funds promised to Karnataka. He cited the Union Budget allocation of Rs 5,300 crore for the Upper Bhadra Irrigation Project, alleging that the funds had not yet been released.
“If you are questioning delays here, you should also question that lie,” Shivakumar told the opposition benches.
The episode underscores growing tensions in the Assembly over welfare spending and fiscal management, with the Gruha Lakshmi scheme remaining a politically sensitive issue for both the ruling party and the opposition.