Medical college privatisation row: Jagan claims over 1 crore signatures against CM Naidu's govt

Tadepalli: Terming the privatisation of medical colleges as the biggest of all scams, YSRCP President and former Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy said over one crore people have opposed the move.

He said people of AP have expressed solidarity with the party and that the protests would continue till the decision is reversed.

‘Privatisation affecting public health’

Jagan addressed party leaders on Tuesday and flagged off the vans carrying the signature papers, and ahead of meeting the governor to apprise him of the alleged fraud by the coalition government.

He said 1,04,11,146 people have signed the papers during Racha Banda and other programmes held across the state against the privatisation, which also adversely affects public health, and they have also given their phone numbers, which adds to the authenticity of the campaign.

“We will meet the governor, after paying homage to BR Ambedkar at the Smrithi Vanam, and apprise him of how quality medical care and medical education will be snatched away from the poor with the privatisation. We will explain the audacity of the Chandrababu government, which agreed to pay salaries to private medical colleges from the State exchequer,” he said.

The campaign is a culmination of Racha Banda meetings and rallies at various levels after announcing the programme in October and visiting the Narsipatnam medical college, Jagan said.

‘CM Naidu taking kickbacks’

“History tells us that former Chief Minister N Janardhan Reddy had to resign after allotting a single medical college to the private sector, but here Chandrababu has been giving medical colleges left, right and centre to private players for kickbacks, which is the mother of all scams,”

We will expose the scam at all available avenues and explore legal options while continuing to protest at all levels seeking rollback of the privatisation move by the Chandrababu government, Jagan said.

‘CM Naidu govt weakening medical and education sectors’

He lauded the cadre for making the campaign a grand success and flayed Chandrababu Naidu for weakening the institutions, more so the medical and education sectors. Ridiculing Chandrababu’s ire over the Collectors for their performance, he said it was the graph of Chandrababu that is falling drastically, and he has been shifting the blame to administrators.

The government should run hospitals, schools and RTC buses to keep private players and their exploitation away, but Chandrababu is doing the opposite, which shows his priorities. We have done our best to keep the three sectors in government and will fight it out till the privatisation decision is taken back, failing which, when we assume office, the private players will face serious consequences, Jagan warned.