BJP MLA slams CM Revanth Reddy over remarks on engineering students

Hyderabad: BJP MLA Palvai Harish Babu criticised Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on August 3 for remarks calling engineering students a criminal waste, attributing the statement to state government failure. Addressing the media, the legislator noted that teachers and students were insulted by Congress during the Telangana movement. He asserted that if the Chief Minister was concerned about declining standards, he should have reviewed technical education over the past two and a half years while holding the portfolio, and implemented the 2018 BVR Mohan Reddy expert committee recommendations.

The BJP leader demanded a white paper on improvements in government-run engineering institutions, pointing out the contradiction between calling students a criminal waste and approving 63 new private engineering colleges. He alleged that the Chief Minister expressed frustration because Rs 5,000 crore remains pending out of Rs 10,000 crore total fee reimbursement dues owed to students.

Furthermore, the MLA highlighted that 3,000 teaching and non-teaching posts remain vacant across 15 state universities without regular professors. He criticized the absence of a dedicated Education Minister, noting that the Principal Secretary functions as the de facto minister, principal secretary, and department head. Demanding an unconditional apology to the student community, Palvai Harish Babu recalled how engineers from Telugu states earned a global reputation, adding that dismissing engineering students was offensive.