Maharashtra election results: Mahayuti wins big with Ladki Bahin Yojana beneficiaries

PUNE: The state govt's cash transfer scheme for women, the Mukhya Mantri Majhi Ladki Bahin Yojana , proved to be a game changer for the ruling Mahayuti alliance .

The Mahayuti dominated five districts that also had the highest number of beneficiaries under the scheme, comprising Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, Solapur, and Thane. These districts saw a 6% increase in women voter turnout compared with the Lok Sabha elections in May.

In Pune district, which reported the highest number of beneficiaries under the Ladki scheme, Mahayuti was leading in 18 of the 21 assembly seats. The alliance won 14 of the 15 seats in Nashik, which had the second highest number of beneficiaries, and 8 out of 11 seats in Nagpur. In Solapur, Mahayuti was leading in eight of the 11 seats, and in Thane district, they were leading in 16 of 18 seats.

Other districts that saw good women voter turnout as well as high numbers of Ladki Bahin beneficiaries include Ahmednagar, Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Jalgaon, Kolhapur, Mumbai Suburban, and Nanded.

Ladki Bahin, which was launched end June, gives a monthly stipend of Rs 1500 to women between the ages of 21 and 65 years with an annual family income below Rs 2.5 lakh. TBetween July and October, the govt managed to give beneficiaries Rs 7,500 each. he scheme covered 2.4 crore women.

Many women told TOI they voted for the Mahayuti because of the payments. Pune resident Nanda Mhatre said the monthly amount made her feel financially secure. "Now they must give Rs 2,100," she said, referring to Mahayuti's poll promise.

Fifty-year-old Sofia Pathan, a conservancy worker, even sent her son home to Udgir in Latur, eight hours away by bus, to cast his vote. "As a family, we couldn't all afford to go. But I sent my son back to vote because this scheme is helping us with miscellaneous expenses," she said.

"All assembly segments have seen the impact of Ladki Bahin scheme ," said political analyst Chandrakant Bhujbal, adding that disbursement of funds till Nov boosted confidence in continued payments.

During his campaign, chief minister Eknath Shinde had assured the beneficiaries that the Dec installment would be credited as soon as the election results were out. On Saturday, Shinde thanked "all my ladki bahins (dear sisters) in the state." His constituency saw a 13% increase in women voters this time compared with 2019.

Ladki Bahin is based on the Ladli Behena scheme in Madhya Pradesh, which helped the BJP win that state in December 2023.

Before the election, Union home minister Amit Shah urged BJP workers in the state to focus on women voters. The strategy seemed to have worked–aided by the state's gender demographics. Around 4.6 of Maharashtra's 9.7 crore voters are women. Five districts have more female than male voters.