BJP leader’s call to ‘lock up’ Lakshmir Bhandar beneficiaries during polls sparks row in West Bengal

Key Highlights

• Kalipada Sengupta, a member of the BJP’s State committee of BJP, had made the controversial statement at a public meeting at Ghatal in Paschim Medinipur district.
• “When wives go to vote for Trinamool after getting Lakshmi Bhandar, their husbands should keep them locked up in their houses,” she said.
• The Lakshmir Bhandar scheme was launched by the State government in February 2021, ahead of the last Assembly election.
• It now provides cash incentives to over 2.23 crore women in the State.
• All women in the general category, between the ages of 25 and 60 years, are entitled to ₹1,000 per month, while those from reserved categories are entitled to ₹1,200 per month under the scheme envisaged by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee.