Vijayawada: YSRCP chief Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday launched a blistering attack on the Chandrababu Naidu government over the proposed Public-Private Partnership (PPP) model for government medical colleges, warning that those who take over the institutions would be sent to jail within two months of a change in government.

Handing over copies of a petition bearing more than one crore signatures opposing the PPP move to the Governor at Lok Bhavan, Jagan described the privatisation of medical colleges as a “historic scam” and alleged that the government’s promise to pay staff salaries despite handing over management to private entities amounted to “the biggest fraud of all.”

Speaking to the media after meeting the Governor, Jagan claimed that 1,04,11,336 people had voluntarily signed the petition, calling it an unprecedented mass movement. “Such a protest has never happened anywhere in the country. People from villages came forward on their own to oppose this injustice,” he said, urging Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu to withdraw the decision immediately.

Jagan argued that government-run hospitals and medical colleges were essential to keep private healthcare in check.

“If everything is handed over to private players, there will be no control. Ordinary people will be forced to sell their assets for treatment. If government hospitals exist, private hospitals cannot exploit people,” he said, questioning whether students from ordinary families would still be able to afford medical education under a fully privatised system.

The former Chief Minister alleged that 17 medical colleges, worth nearly Rs 1 lakh crore, were being handed over under the PPP model, despite the government’s ability to allocate Rs 1,000 crore annually to complete them. “If they cannot fund them, they should leave them. We will complete the colleges when we come to power,” he said, accusing the government of harming the poor merely to deny credit to the previous regime.

Jagan also announced that the YSRCP would file an affidavit in court and submit the signatures as evidence, warning that all decisions taken under the PPP model would be reversed. “Within two months of coming to power, we will take strict action and send those responsible to jail,” he reiterated.

Expanding his criticism, Jagan accused Chandrababu Naidu of attempting to privatise every public institution, including hospitals, schools and even transport services. He alleged that public anger against the government stemmed from the Chief Minister’s decisions, not administrative inefficiency, and warned that continued “privatisation-driven governance” would only deepen public resentment.

Calling the signature campaign a historic chapter in public resistance, Jagan said the movement would continue both politically and legally until the PPP decision was scrapped.