Punjab Gov writes to CM, seeks report on non-disbursal of scholarship to SC students

“If it is correct, it would be a most reprehensible violation of constitutional rights of SC students and grave injustice to them,” the Governor wrote in a letter to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann seeking the report at the earliest.

The letter said that the Governor has taken cognisance of reports of the non-payment of scholarship by the state government to the colleges.

It is not unusual for the Governor to write to the state government. However, the Governors usually do not interfere in state government’s functioning.

The governor’s letter to CM comes barely a week after Mann ordered a comprehensive probe into alleged irregularities in the post-matric scholarship scheme that had surfaced during the previous Capt Amarinder Singh-led Congress regime in the state. The scholarship issue remained a poll plank too during the Assembly elections held earlier this year.

On Wednesday, NCSC chairperson Vijay Sampla claimed that two lakh students from the Scheduled Castes (SC) category dropped out of colleges between 2017 and 2020 in Punjab as the state government failed to pay the dues under a scholarship scheme worth around ₹2,000 crore. He said that the commission has sought an explanation from the state government on why the money has not been paid to colleges despite the payment of dues by the Centre.

Sampla said: “We have taken suo motu cognisance in the matter. There have been many complaints from SC students that they are not being allowed in colleges as the government has not paid their fees. “There were around three lakh SC students who benefited from the scheme in 2017 and the number dropped to 1-1.25 lakh in 2020. When we asked the state government, they said these children dropped out”.

A meeting was held on Monday between the social justice and empowerment ministry and Punjab government to discuss the matter. The meeting discussed that the state government had to pay dues worth Rs 2000 crore to these colleges while the Centre had cleared all dues. “Where has the money gone that is due.” Sampla had asked, adding that the Punjab government has been asked to give an explanation by next Wednesday.

Last week, Mann had announced the decision for a probe into the matter. “I have received files pertaining to the release of scholarship amount during the previous government. Irregularities have been found in releasing funds to private institutions… orders have been issued for a probe,” Mann had tweeted while promising to act against those who put the future of SC students at stake.