Six State Chief Secretaries Face Possible Privilege Action Over SC Scholarship Delays

Parliament’s Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has decided to approach Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to seek privilege action against the chief secretaries of six states for failing to appear before the parliamentary panel to explain prolonged delays and irregularities in scholarships meant for Scheduled Caste (SC) students. The move follows an examination of CAG Report No. 36 of 2025, which flagged serious deficiencies in scholarship implementation, including delayed payments, inadequate beneficiary verification and financial irregularities.

The chief secretaries of Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Odisha and Bihar were summoned to appear before the committee on October 15, but none attended, according to PAC chairman K. C. Venugopal. The committee unanimously decided to bring their absence to the Speaker’s attention under parliamentary privilege rules.

Parliamentary privilege action refers to formal proceedings that may be initiated when conduct is suspected of violating Parliament’s authority, dignity or ability to perform its functions. In this case, the PAC is asking the Lok Sabha Speaker to consider whether the chief secretaries’ failure to attend warrants further action.

The proposed motion does not mean the officials have already been found guilty of misconduct or punished. The Speaker may examine the circumstances and determine whether further proceedings are warranted under the applicable rules. Depending on the outcome, possible consequences could include a demand for an explanation, a reprimand or other action permitted under parliamentary procedure.

The CAG audit found that 10.87 lakh pre-matric beneficiaries across 12 states and Union Territories experienced payment delays of up to 48 months, while 29.88 lakh post-matric beneficiaries across 14 states and Union Territories faced delays of up to 89 months. During 2023–24, only 59 per cent of sanctioned pre-matric beneficiaries and 48.8 per cent of sanctioned post-matric beneficiaries received payments, according to the reported findings.

The audit identified inadequate caste and income verification, duplicate and excess payments, and scholarships reaching ineligible beneficiaries. Venugopal alleged poor coordination between the Centre and states and said Action Taken Reports remained pending even after three months.

Approximately ₹52,878 crore was spent on the two schemes between 2017 and 2024, including around ₹30,234.5 crore from the Centre. The PAC sought details of monitoring officers, inspections, social audits and third-party evaluations, directing the ministry to submit a detailed action-taken note within a month.

State-specific findings included ₹10.98 crore paid to 990 beneficiaries through 477 bank accounts in Odisha. Punjab was questioned over ₹330.32 crore remaining unspent in 2020–21 while ₹231.48 crore in scholarships awaited disbursement. Uttar Pradesh faced questions over delays affecting 5,41,170 students during 2017–21, while Bihar was asked to explain zero reported post-matric expenditure from 2019–20 to 2021–22. Madhya Pradesh was questioned over zero reported pre-matric expenditure and beneficiaries after 2021–22.

The committee questioned whether Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) and Aadhaar-linked systems were excluding eligible students. Post-matric beneficiaries fell from 50.16 lakh in 2020–21 to 30.26 lakh in 2021–22. The PAC also discussed raising the parental income ceiling to ₹4.5 lakh and reviewing funding arrangements and tuition-fee caps.