Ineligible persons enrolled in Old age Pension Scheme in DMK rule: R B Udhayakumar
Chennai: Revenue minister R B Udhayakumar on Thursday accused former revenue minister in previous DMK regime of providing old age pension to ineligible persons including deceased persons in his constituency during his tenure as revenue minister in 2006-11. However, Attur MLA I. Periyasami who was revenue minister then denied the charges saying that only eligible persons were enrolled.
Intervening in the debate on the demand for revenue department in the assembly, Mr Udhayakumar said that a review done by his department on the beneficiaries of the OAP scheme in Attur assembly constituency revealed that 1330 dead persons has been enrolled in the scheme and 526 married women living with their husbands were enrolled in the scheme as widowers.
“As many as 26,000 persons were found to be ineligible in the Dindigul district,” he noted, showing the copies of the review report.
The minister said that AIADMK government intends to extend the benefit to the eligible needy persons. “In the last five year, Jayalalithaa government had allotted Rs 4200 crore to the scheme while the previous DMK government had allotted mere Rs 1700 crore,” he said.
Mr Periyarsami said that eligible persons were enrolled for the OAP scheme as per the direction of the then chief minister M. Karunanidhi. He noted that from 12 beneficiaries in the previous AIADMK regime, the DMK government had extended the scheme to 24 lakh people and paid a total of Rs 1200 crore.
Revenue minister responded that more beneficiaries were added in the last year of the DMK regime keeping in mind the elections. He said that DMK member had not replied to his charge of adding ineligible people to the pension scheme. But, speaker asked the DMK member Subramanian who speaking on the debate to continue his speech refusing to give a chance to Mr Periyasami.
DMK members were on their feet protesting the Speaker’s decision. Speaker Dhanapal condemned the DMK members for disrupting the proceedings despite his repeated plea.
“It is not right to stand and disrupt the proceedings. IT has become a ploy for DMK members to raise an issue before the minister’s reply,” he said. Mr Periyasami said that those people might have died after being enrolled in the pension scheme.
“People were enrolled in the OAP scheme after the scrutiny by special Tehsildars,” he noted.
