Shiv Sena (UBT) on Wednesday, 15 July alleged that Maharashtra's economy has been brought to its knees by systemic institutional corruption, citing a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report that it claims exposes a ₹3,541 crore fraud through the state's flagship Ladki Bahin Yojana. The allegations were published in a sharply worded editorial in the party's mouthpiece, Saamana, accusing the ruling alliance of engineering a 'State Capture' to purchase votes ahead of the Maharashtra Assembly elections.

What the CAG Report Allegedly Revealed

According to the Saamana editorial, the Ladki Bahin Yojana — a welfare scheme promising ₹1,500 per month to women — was launched with a total outlay of ₹14,000 crore and enrolled 2.43 crore beneficiaries. However, the subsequent CAG audit reportedly found that 92 lakh beneficiaries were either bogus or ineligible.

Among the discrepancies flagged: approximately 62 lakh individuals had not completed mandatory e-KYC verification; 29,000 men and 8,000 government employees were allegedly enrolled illegally and drew funds from the scheme. The editorial charged that funds were deliberately routed into these accounts just before the Model Code of Conduct came into force.

The 'State Capture' Charge

Drawing a striking parallel to post-Soviet Eastern Europe — where political elites and oligarchs colluded to seize control of state institutions for private gain — the Uddhav Thackeray-led party described the alleged fraud as a textbook case of State Capture. 'Spending ₹3,541 crore from the public treasury to systematically purchase 30 to 35 lakh votes is not ordinary corruption. It is the outright purchasing of a state by manipulating laws, tenders, and public policies for political survival,' the editorial stated.

The party noted that the government has since quietly removed the 92 lakh ineligible names from the beneficiary list — but only after winning the elections — without, it argued, returning or accounting for the funds already disbursed.

Attack on Chief Minister Fadnavis

The editorial levelled pointed criticism at Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, accusing him of deflecting accountability by branding opposition voices as those 'defaming Maharashtra' whenever corruption allegations surface. It noted that despite investigative reports linking public figures to large-scale land scams, no meaningful accountability mechanism has been activated.

This comes amid a broader pattern of political friction between the Mahayuti ruling alliance and the Maha Vikas Aghadi opposition, with both sides trading accusations of financial misconduct since the assembly election results.

Double Standards and Fiscal Alarm

The editorial drew a sharp contrast between the state's treatment of ordinary citizens and its alleged tolerance of elite wrongdoing. It pointed out that absconding businessmen — including Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi, and Lalit Modi — fled the country after defaulting on bank loans, while struggling farmers face immediate property seizures and households lose electricity for missed bill payments. Yet, the editorial argued, a government presiding over a ₹3,541 crore alleged fraud continues to govern without consequence.

It also flagged a World Bank report indicating a sharp decline in Maharashtra's per capita income relative to other states, and warned that rising public debt and eroding borrowing credibility are compounding the fiscal crisis.

Demands and Warning

Shiv Sena (UBT) demanded full financial accountability, calling for recovery of the allegedly misappropriated funds directly from the personal assets of the then-Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Ministers, the full cabinet, and senior bureaucrats — including the Chief Secretary, Finance Secretary, and Women and Child Development Secretary — who reportedly cleared the payouts. The party called for the freezing and auctioning of their personal movable and immovable properties.

The editorial warned that by prioritising what it termed 'electoral bribes' over legitimate governance, the ruling dispensation has deprived vulnerable groups — including farmers, students, widows, the underprivileged, and the disabled — of essential state support. It cautioned that such financial indiscipline risks permanently eroding public trust in welfare schemes and social governance institutions.