J&K Governor Satya Pal Malik has stirred another controversy by calling India's rich people as "rotten potatoes." Malik said that the rich class of the country are "Sada Aalu" ( rotten potatoes) who are insensitive towards society.
He was addressing a gathering in Jammu at an even organised by State's Sainik Welfare Society. "A few of these people are in the country's rich class who do not do a charity of single rupee. I consider them sada se aalu. Please don't take it otherwise," he said.
Hitting hard at the India's wealthiest man, Mukesh Ambani, for spending over Rs 700 crore on his daughter's wedding, the J&K governor said, "When a journalist asked the country's wealthiest man if he does any charity, he said he doesn't but he adds to the wealth of the country."
Drawing comparisons of India's elite and rich with those in Europe, Malik referred to Microsoft founder Bill Gates and said that he spends 99 per cent of his earnings on charity.
Referring to the gala Ambani wedding, the J&K Governor added, "Would he increase the wealth of the country by spending Rs 700 crore on daughter's wedding. the same amount of money could have been used to 700 schools or 7,000 widows of slain soldiers could have raised their kids with that money."
He further said that the politicians and bureaucrats in J&K are also insensitive towards their society.
Malik said that the country is not built by the rich and elite but by the workforce in industries, service employees, farmers and armed forces.
"We should be boosting the morale of Indian Army men, helping them and always remember them," Malik added.
The J&K Governor's tiff with the rich class was evident when he scrapped the Mediclaim health insurance scheme for the government employees in the state that was awarded to Anil Ambani's Reliance Insurance Group. The Governor said that the Mediclaim was full of frauds and did not benefit the common people in any way.
