Ahead of the 2027 Uttar Pradesh assembly elections, the BJP government in the state is mulling over a financial assistance scheme for women, who constitute about 45% of the voters, on the lines of schemes announced by the Bihar, Delhi, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra governments, according to people familiar with the matter.
Signalling a fight for women votes between the BJP-led NDA and the Samajwadi Party-led INDIA bloc, the reported move has led to SP chief Akhilesh Yadav repeating his pledge that his party would begin with ₹ 40,000 yearly assistance for women, with annual increases. Though the eligibility criteria is being finalised, the families below the ₹ 8 lakh-12 lakh per annum bracket are likely to be included in the beneficiary scheme, the sources said. Reacting to reports that the BJP was considering a plan to give financial assistance to women in the state, Samajwadi Party national president Akhilesh Yadav dismissed it as another hollow election slogan and countered it by repeating his pledge that his party would begin with ₹ 40,000 yearly for women, with annual increases. The party hopes to reap the dividend in the 2027 assembly election and retain power for the third term with the support of women voters,” he said.
The focus will be on women voters from economically weaker sections, lower-income households as well as those belonging to Scheduled Caste, Scheduled Tribe and Below Poverty Line families. “Empowerment of women is not an election agenda for us. Women reservation is also on top of the BJP’s agenda. “To check anti-incumbency in Uttar Pradesh, the BJP is playing the women’s financial assistance card.
When asked if the government is planning a financial assistance scheme for women before the assembly elections, Uttar Pradesh finance minister Suresh Kumar Khanna said women empowerment has been the top priority for the BJP-led NDA government in Uttar Pradesh. Women will not be taken in by the Samajwadi Party which has been changing its stand,” Khanna said. Accusing the ruling party of relying solely on money to win polls, Yadav, in a post on X on Thursday, claimed the funds were “ill-gotten gains” that “religious and aware women of UP will never accept.
