Those with pucca houses should not get PMAY funds: TMC MP Dev

Asserting he will not hesitate to “differentiate between right and wrong” even if something inappropriate is committed by anyone from his own party, actor-turned-Trinamool Congress MP Deepak Adhikari aka Dev said those with pucca houses should not get Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) funds.

His comment came in the backdrop of the Opposition BJP alleging that those deserving were not getting funds under PMAY, the housing scheme for the rural poor, in TMC-controlled panchayats.

Two central teams recently visited Malda and Paschim Medinipur districts to meet BDOs and villagers and ascertain the situation.

“What is wrong should be acknowledged, even if it is committed by anyone from our party. The poor, who don’t have pucca roof over their heads, should get the government’s rural housing funds, not those who already live in one or two-storey buildings,” Dev told reporters in response to a query during a visit to his Ghatal Lok Sabha constituency in Paschim Medinipur district on Monday.

“There may be instances of ineligible people getting PMAY funds but the TMC’s top leadership has zero tolerance for it,” he said.

Asked about the party MP’s comment, TMC national spokesperson Sukhendu Sekhar Roy told PTI that there are certain yardsticks for determining PMAY beneficiaries and the state government always adheres to those.

“The list of beneficiaries is entirely prepared by the administration based on certain parameters. If there are anomalies, those will be addressed by the administration,” he said.

The BJP appreciated the MP for speaking up on the “real situation on the ground”.

“Either the two-time MP has finally mustered the courage to speak the truth that people with pucca houses are getting PMAY funds by depriving the poor or he was blissfully unaware of the situation in his constituency till now and has suddenly woken up to the issue,” BJP state spokesperson Samik Bhattacharya.

“Either way, we would like to see how he acts on the issue. Poor people are now speaking up and staging protests. Dev might have read the writing on the wall,” he added.