A legal challenge has been filed in the Madhya Pradesh High Court over the exclusion of women from the Baiga, Sahariya and Bharia tribal communities from the Ladli Behna Yojana.
Former MLA Paras Saklecha has approached the Indore Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court, arguing that women from these particularly vulnerable tribal groups are being denied benefits of the scheme because their families receive a separate nutrition assistance grant. The petition is scheduled to come up for hearing on Wednesday.
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Why Are Tribal Women Being Excluded?
According to the report, families belonging to the Baiga, Sahariya and Bharia communities receive ₹1,500 per month under a special nutrition assistance programme. The money is intended to support children’s nutrition and is deposited in the account of the female head of the family for administrative convenience.
The petition argues that this payment is being treated as income or assistance received directly by the woman, making her ineligible for the Ladli Behna scheme under its existing eligibility provisions. Saklecha has claimed that this has affected around five lakh women.
Two Schemes Have Different Objectives
The petition maintains that the two government programmes serve different purposes. The nutrition assistance is intended to address children’s nutritional needs, while the Ladli Behna Yojana focuses on women’s economic independence, health and nutrition.
The petitioner has therefore argued that receiving nutrition assistance meant for the family should not automatically prevent the woman from receiving benefits under a separate women’s welfare programme. These are claims made in the petition and will be examined by the court.
What Do the Ladli Behna Rules Say?
The Madhya Pradesh government’s official scheme information lists an ineligibility condition for women who themselves receive ₹1,000 or more per month under a government scheme. The same eligibility framework also contains other exclusion criteria related to family income, government employment, taxation and property ownership.
