Bengaluru, Jul 1 (PTI) As the Karnataka energy department began door-to-door verification of beneficiaries under the Gruha Jyothi scheme on Wednesday, senior BJP leader R Ashoka alleged that the government was using the exercise to determine eligibility based on income and caste by asking for PAN cards and caste certificates.

The leader of the opposition in the state Assembly claimed that the "government of loot," struggling to find the funds needed to sustain its guarantee schemes, is trying every possible means to deprive lakhs of poor and middle-class people of the benefits of the Gruha Jyothi scheme through this policy U-turn.

One of the five guarantee schemes introduced by the Congress government, the Gruha Jyothi scheme provides up to 200 units of free electricity to all households.

The scheme, launched in July 2023, is undergoing a verification process.

Electricity Supply Companies' meter readers and staff will visit consumers' homes to verify records and collect beneficiary information, the government said on Tuesday.

The verification will be completed on-site using a mobile application and a declaration form.

The energy department has requested all beneficiaries to keep the following documents ready for verification by the visiting staff: Aadhaar card (for verification only), a passport-size photograph, voter ID card, PAN card, tenancy or rental agreement (wherever applicable), ration card, and caste certificate.

Chief Minister D K Shivakumar recently stated that the government had received reports of misuse of the scheme.

He said that several commercial establishments were taking advantage of it and called for a re-verification of beneficiaries.

"For Gruha Jyothi verification, a voter ID is enough. Why is a PAN card required? Why is a caste certificate required?" Ashoka asked.

In a post on X, he said that before the elections, the Congress had proclaimed that the benefits under the guarantee scheme were available to everyone, but was now attempting to betray the people of Karnataka.

"To hide the fact that the state treasury is completely bankrupt, the government has now devised a new plan of conducting door-to-door verification to reduce the number of beneficiaries under the Gruha Jyothi scheme," he added.

Noting that, under the pretext of re-verifying Gruha Jyothi beneficiaries, ESCOM staff visiting homes were reportedly asking people to produce their PAN cards and caste certificates, the Leader of the Opposition asked Shivakumar: "Before the elections, in your eagerness to come to power, you promised 200 units of free electricity for everyone without any conditions. Now, why are you trying to determine eligibility based on income and caste? What kind of 'guarantee' is this?" "Why is a caste certificate required to provide free electricity? To determine whether Gruha Jyothi beneficiaries are residents or voters of the state, a voter ID or Aadhaar card should be sufficient. Why, then, is information about their caste and income required," he asked.

"By asking for a PAN card and caste certificate, whom are you planning to exclude from the scheme," he questioned.

Ashoka asserted that the BJP would not allow "this anti-people government—which came to power on the basis of false promises and is harassing people in the name of documentation while taking away their rights—to deprive citizens of the benefits to which they are entitled." PTI KSU SSK

Beneficiary verification under free electricity scheme draws criticism over PAN and caste certificate requirements for eligibility checks. Door-to-door verification was begun for beneficiaries under the Gruha Jyothi scheme, with electricity staff collecting records through a mobile application and declaration form. Beneficiaries were asked to keep Aadhaar card for verification only, passport-size photograph, voter ID card, PAN card, tenancy or rental agreement where applicable, ration card, and caste certificate ready. The exercise was said to check misuse, while opposition criticism focused on the request for PAN cards and caste certificates.