'Farishtey Dilli Ke' scheme stopped despite saving lives, claims AAP; BJP says 'failed' initiative

New Delhi: The 'Farishtey Dilli Ke' scheme launched by the previous Aam Aadmi Party dispensation saved thousands of lives but is now being halted by the BJP-led Delhi government, the AAP claimed on Sunday.

The BJP, however, termed the scheme a failure and accused the AAP of indulging in corruption under the guise of the initiative.

The 'Farishtey Dilli Ke' scheme provided free medical treatment to road accident victims in private hospitals.

The Delhi government, in its 2025-26 budget presented by Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, allocated Rs 12,893 crore for the health sector, prioritising Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, the establishment of two new medical colleges, and the addition of 16,186 hospital beds.

Addressing a press conference, Delhi AAP chief and former health minister Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that the scheme had saved thousands of lives but was now being halted.

"How can someone stop such a good scheme that saves lives? The BJP government has removed it from the budget," Bharadwaj said.

Introduced in 2017 under then chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, the scheme covered the entire treatment cost of accident victims in private hospitals, encouraging bystanders to assist them without fear of financial burden. According to the AAP, more than 10,000 lives were saved under the initiative.

Bharadwaj claimed that even during his tenure as health minister, officials appointed by the Lieutenant Governor attempted to halt the scheme. The AAP had to approach the Supreme Court, after which funds were released to continue the initiative, he said.

"The BJP failed to stop this scheme through the LG, but now, after coming to power, they have shut it down completely," he alleged.

Meanwhile, Delhi BJP President Virendra Sachdeva said the scheme was ineffective and plagued with corruption.

"Farishtey scheme was never successful, and yes, corruption did occur under its guise," Sachdeva said.

He argued that all welfare schemes introduced by the AAP government had turned into avenues for scams and that the Farishtey scheme exposed the flaws in the party's claims of having a world-class health model.

Sachdeva questioned the need for the scheme when the AAP government had been asserting since 2015 that Delhi's public hospitals provided top-notch healthcare services.

"If the government hospitals were truly efficient, why was there a need to send accident victims to private hospitals where hefty bills could be generated under the pretext of providing services, leading to commission-based corruption?" he asked.

He further alleged that by mid-2023, the scheme had nearly ceased operations.

"In about 2,000 days, only 22,000 people benefited from it. This means that around 11 serious accidents occurred daily in Delhi, and all victims were sent to private hospitals. This indicates either government hospitals were dysfunctional, or there was collusion between private hospitals and AAP workers to siphon off public funds," he said.

The BJP leader assured that road accident victims in Delhi would receive the best medical facilities through government hospitals under the current administration.