People want Delhi govt to order probe into women's pensions 'scam' of AAP: Sachdeva

New Delhi, Jul 7 (PTI) Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva on Monday claimed that people want the Rekha Gupta government to order a probe into an alleged "scam" involving women's pensions during the previous Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) dispensation.

AAP hit back, alleging the BJP which is in power in Delhi wants to shut down all welfare schemes for the people.

Citing media reports, Sachdeva in a statement claimed that according to current findings, over 83,000 registered women beneficiaries of the pension scheme were "fake" or "suspicious" and said the "scam" involves Rs 200 crore per year.

"The Delhiites now want the Rekha Gupta-led government to conduct a high-level investigation into the matter," he said.

Last year, some Delhi BJP MLAs and certain media outlets raised concerns about irregularities in the distribution of this pension and demanded an investigation, said a Delhi BJP statement.

Following due approvals, an investigation began in October 2024. However, the then government stalled its progress until February. According to available data, 3,81,539 women were registered for this pension scheme, it said.

"The investigation found irregularities with over 60,000 fake registrations. Additionally, 22,795 cases involved duplication or other discrepancies," the statement claimed.

In 60,573 cases, investigators found that women either could not be located at their registered addresses or there was no proof of residence. In several instances, the addresses were found to be "fake", it added.

AAP said in a statement that it had already warned the people of Delhi that if the BJP came to power, it would shut down all welfare schemes meant for the public.

"That is exactly what is happening now. The BJP has begun closing down hundreds of Mohalla Clinics, alleging a scam.

"They have discontinued the free treatment of accident victims, again citing a scam. It is only a matter of time before they end the free electricity scheme, too, claiming yet another fictitious scam," AAP charged.

Immediately after coming to power, the BJP allowed a hike in private school fees. They also attempted to ban 62 lakh vehicles in Delhi in collusion with automobile manufacturers, but their conspiracy was exposed by AAP and the public, claimed the statement. PTI VIT KSS KSS