BJP slams AAP for blocking Ayushman Bharat Scheme

BJP Delhi president Virendra Sachdeva, Union Minister Harsh Malhotra, MP Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, Yogendra Chandolia, Bansuri Swaraj and Praveen Khandelwal on Tuesday expressed their dismay over former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s refusal to implement the Ayushman Bharat Scheme, despite court orders.

In a press conference, the leaders criticised the AAP government for not adopting the scheme, which has already been successfully launched in Odisha, leaving Delhi and West Bengal as the only states not to implement it.

Sachdeva congratulated the people of Odisha for benefiting from the Central Government’s Ayushman Bharat Scheme, pointing out that the scheme had been delayed by the previous Odisha government under the BJD. He accused the Delhi and West Bengal governments of punishing their residents by not implementing the scheme, suggesting that CM Mamata Banerjee and Kejriwal acted out of self-interest. He also showed a video from Manish Sisodia’s 2020-21 Budget speech in which he supported the implementation of the scheme in Delhi, but later backtracked on it.

BJP leaders emphasised that while Delhi MPs fought in court to push for the scheme, the AAP-led Delhi government, particularly Health Minister Saurabh Bhardwaj, actively opposed it. The Delhi High Court recently questioned the Delhi government’s resistance, asking why the government would block a scheme that benefits its residents. Sachdeva accused Kejriwal of opposing the scheme simply because it was named “Prime Minister Ayushman Bharat,” and claimed the government was more focused on scams than on improving healthcare.

Sachdeva also criticised the AAP government for delaying the Rs 2,406.77 crore allocated under the Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM) scheme to improve Delhi’s healthcare infrastructure. He pointed out that despite the scheme being implemented in Punjab, where there are no elections, the Delhi government has failed to take action.

Bansuri Swaraj explained that Ayushman Bharat has two key components - Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY), which provides free medical treatment of up to Rs 5 lakh per family, and the PM-ABHIM scheme, which allocates funds for upgrading health infrastructure. She stressed that while the scheme has been successfully implemented in other states, Delhi continues to delay signing the MoU, obstructing its progress.

The Delhi High Court had issued a suo-motu order on December 24, 2024, questioning the Delhi government’s delay, with a deadline of January 5, 2025, set for compliance. Swaraj also mentioned that the health department’s lawyer revealed in court that the MoU was ready, but the AAP government had not signed it.

Union Minister Harsh Malhotra criticised the Delhi government’s approach, accusing Health Minister Bhardwaj of going to the Supreme Court to block the scheme instead of implementing it. He pointed out that while residents of Delhi benefit from Ayushman Bharat in Central Government hospitals, Delhi government hospitals remain excluded due to Kejriwal’s inaction. Malhotra also questioned Kejriwal’s failure to deliver on promises of building 20 new hospitals in the city.

Yogendra Chandolia accused Kejriwal of neglecting the Scheduled Castes, the poor, and the OBC communities by preventing them from benefiting from the scheme. He warned that despite the tactics used by Kejriwal, the BJP would ensure the implementation of the scheme if it comes to power in Delhi.