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PTC Web Desk: Senior Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia on Thursday accused the Punjab Government of misleading women through its newly launched financial assistance programme, alleging that a large number of beneficiaries had not received the promised payments even a day after the scheme was introduced.

In a statement issued to the media, Bikram Singh Majithia questioned the viability of the initiative, claiming that the state would require approximately Rs 21,472 crore annually to provide financial support under the scheme. According to his calculations, around Rs 16,104 crore would be needed for the remaining nine months of the current financial year, from July 2026 to March 2027.

Referring to population estimates, the SAD leader said Punjab's projected population for 2026 is about 3.23 crore, including nearly 1.51 crore women. He estimated that around 95.13 lakh women in the general category would receive Rs 1,000 per month, requiring an annual allocation of Rs 11,415.60 crore. He further claimed that approximately 55.87 lakh Scheduled Caste women would be entitled to Rs 1,500 per month, resulting in an additional annual expenditure of Rs 10,056.60 crore.

Majithia alleged that the government had arranged only Rs 1,500 crore for the scheme, of which Rs 1,000 crore had reportedly been borrowed, while the remaining Rs 500 crore was allegedly sourced from GAMADA funds and labour welfare cess. He questioned how the administration intended to continue financing the programme in the coming years.

The former minister also claimed that many eligible women had not received the first instalment more than 24 hours after the scheme's launch. He said beneficiaries had been expecting confirmation messages from their banks but found no deposits in their accounts.

According to Majithia, despite extensive publicity surrounding the programme, the government had failed to ensure timely disbursement of funds to a majority of intended recipients. He described the situation as a serious failure in the implementation of the scheme.

Calling the issue a breach of trust with women in Punjab, Majithia referred to the promises made by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and AAP national convener Arvind Kejriwal ahead of the 2022 Punjab Assembly elections. He said the party had assured that every adult woman would receive Rs 1,000 per month after coming to power.

He further argued that, based on those earlier commitments, every eligible woman should have received approximately Rs 55,000 in accumulated payments over the past four and a half years. He accused the AAP government of failing to honour those assurances.

Majithia also challenged the state government to make public detailed information on the implementation of the scheme. He demanded district-wise, block-wise, village-wise and beneficiary-wise data indicating how many women had received Rs 1,000, how many had received Rs 1,500 and how many were still awaiting payment.

In addition, he asked the government to clarify its plan regarding what he described as pending dues of Rs 55,000 for each eligible woman. He said that if the administration did not release the requested data, women across the state would seek accountability over the promises made during the 2022 election campaign.

Majithia alleged that the Punjab government had focused more on publicity than delivery, claiming that despite extensive advertising, many women were still waiting for the financial assistance announced under the scheme.