Jharkhand BJP Leader Gets Ration From Antyodaya, Claims Being MNREGA Labour

Ranchi: In the past three years, Jharkhand has witnessed at least 23 hunger deaths. At a time when eligible poor are not getting rations and other benefits from social welfare schemes, ruling party leaders are milking all the benefits and perks of the scheme, that too on time.

BJP vice- president of Giridih district, Mahadev Dubey not just holds a Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA) job card but also Antyodaya ration card, which is mostly issued to individuals from BPL category.

Ironically, the BJP leader hails from the same Jamua assembly segment, of which Savitri Devi was a resident. While Dubey got access to all the social schemes, Devi was denied of all the benefits promised by government welfare schemes. Dubey, not just got the cards, but also managed to get 38 days of work too, in 2019.

The 48-year-old BJP leader is in-charge of the Jamua assembly segment and has two-storey building in Deori. Antyodaya Cards have been issued in the name of his family members. For the uninitiated, Antyodya card, allows a family to get 40 kilograms of rice every month at the rate of rupee one per kilogram, among many other food-grains.

MNREGA job card of Mahadev Dubey

However, the recent hunger death victim, Savitri Devi, was denied of an Antyodya card. Her application for a new card had also not been accepted by the food-grains supply department.

Significantly, not only BJP vice-president has got a job under MNREGA but he has been paid on time and there are no pending dues to be cleared for him.

His ration card details reveal that he has been regularly availing the benefit of purchasing 40 kilograms of rice. His most recent rice purchase was in November month.

A scan of social media profile of Mahadev Dubey will let you know, that he is close to all bigwigs of Giridih BJP like Jamua MLA Kedar Hazra, Gandey MLA Jai Prakash Verma and Koderma’s both present and former Member of Parliament (MP)s Annapurna Devi and Ravindra Rai, respectively.

When contacted BJP’s Giridih District President Sunil Agrawal, he claimed he has no idea about it. He refused to comment on the same.

Jamua MLA Kedar Hazra gave a similar reaction, he said, “I am out of Giridih at the moment. On my return, I shall look into the matter for a better understanding, following which I will be able to comment on the same.”