Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh Finance Minister Yanamala Ramakrishnudu drew heavy criticism from various quarters, especially opposition parties, for making the state government foot his Rs 2.88 lakh dental bill. Ramakrishnudu had gone to Singapore for a root canal procedure. The AP government on 23 August passed a government order sanctioning the amount as medical reimbursement.
The finance minister has been primarily criticized for utilising state money at a time when AP needs money to build its new capital Amaravati. According to the government order, the reimbursement, which will be drawn by the finance department and disbursed to Ramakrishnudu, does not need “the concurrence of the finance department”. Ramakrishnudu was treated at Azure Dental in Singapore.
The main opposition YSR Congress Party and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which was in an alliance with the ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) till some months ago, came down heavily on the finance minister for “misusing” his position.
“The government of AP has been misusing a lot of state money. There is no financial discipline among officials and even cabinet ministers have been using public funds for themselves. We have given a representation on this issue to the governor and apprised him about the financial irregularities that have been taking place in the state,” said BJP vice-president Vishnu Vardhan Reddy.
The opposition YSR Congress, in a press release, also questioned the state government reimbursing Ramakrishnudu’s dental bill.
When contacted, the TDP spokesperson, however, said this was not a political issue. “As a minister, he received the reimbursement according to government procedures,” he added.
Officials from the AP government did not want to comment on the matter.