Madhya Pradesh HC Upholds Government's Ladli Behna Yojana Policy Decision

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has rejected a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) targeting the Ladli Behna Yojana, a government scheme for women. The court asserted that the state's policy decisions remain within its jurisdiction, and dismissed allegations of arbitrariness in halting new registrations.

Justices Vijay Kumar Shukla and Alok Awasthi presided over the matter, filed by former Ratlam MLA Paras Saklecha. Saklecha argued that the scheme should offer every beneficiary Rs 3,000 monthly, register new participants, and lower the eligibility age to 18. However, the court upheld that these are policy decisions made by the state.

The scheme, launched by the BJP government before the 2023 assembly elections, currently benefits over 1.26 crore women who receive Rs 1,500 per month. The government has committed to increasing this amount to Rs 3,000 by 2028, but the court emphasized that such policies are for the state to implement as it sees fit.