An alleged fraudster in Chhattisgarh has opened an online account in the name of actress Sunny Leone and has managed to receive Rs 1,000 — an amount disbursed monthly to married women in the state under the government’s Mahatari Vandan Yojana. The scheme is a major manifesto promise made by the ruling BJP, aimed at women empowerment. The Bastar district administration is looking into the matter.
The Indian Express checked the Mahatari Vandan Yojana website where one can check details of a beneficiary by entering a unique code given to every beneficiary of the scheme. Once the code and captcha are entered, one can download a PDF file and check how much money the beneficiary has received so far.
The file (downloaded by The Indian Express) shows the name of the beneficiary as Sunny Leone and husband’s name as Jonny Sins. The application was received at Anganwadi level in Talur sector of Bastar district. The file mentions “verified” by the Anganwadi and another supervisor. It also states that the person has received the beneficiary amount for ten months — March to December.
When contacted, Bastar collector Haris S said, “We are looking into the matter.” A senior police official from Bastar said that action will be taken if any complaint is received from the district administration.
On December 4, the government released a total of Rs 652.04 crore as the tenth instalment of the scheme to 70 lakh married women in the state. Till date, over Rs 5,000 crore has been sent to the bank accounts of 70 lakh women under the scheme.
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