Maharashtra officials removed over 92 lakh women from the Mukhyamantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana after a statewide verification drive [1].
The purge represents a significant shift in the administration of the welfare program, as the government seeks to eliminate ineligible recipients while facing accusations that the timing was politically motivated.
The removals occurred in June 2026, following the Maharashtra Assembly elections [2]. The state government utilized an electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) process to weed out ineligible beneficiaries [3]. According to some reports, about 62 lakh beneficiaries failed this eKYC process [4], though the total number of removals exceeded 92 lakh [1].
This reduction means approximately 38% of the original beneficiary pool, nearly four in 10 women, were removed from the program [5]. The government said the move was necessary to ensure funds reached the intended recipients.
The financial implications of the initial rollout have drawn scrutiny. Reports indicate that ₹14,000 crore was paid to ineligible beneficiaries [6]. Additionally, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) flagged ₹3,541 crore in excess expenditure [5]. The CAG also noted that ₹15,586 crore in funds were parked in deposit accounts [5].
Following the deletions, the budget for the scheme was reduced by ₹9,500 crore [7]. Opposition leaders have questioned the sudden verification drive, suggesting the initial inclusion of ineligible names was intended to influence voters before the elections [2].
The government said the eKYC drive was a standard administrative cleanup to protect the state treasury from further leakages. The process aimed to align the beneficiary list with verified identification data to prevent duplicate or fraudulent claims [3].
“Over 92 lakh women were removed from the Ladki Bahin Yojana after a statewide verification drive.”
The mass removal of beneficiaries highlights a tension between rapid welfare expansion and administrative oversight. While the government frames the purge as a fiscal correction to stop the leakage of thousands of crores, the high percentage of removals suggests a significant failure in the initial vetting process. The timing of the verification—immediately following an election—fuels the narrative that the program's initial scale may have been inflated for political gain before being corrected for budgetary sustainability.
