BJP MP Anantkumar Hegde stirred up another controversy, by calling BSNL employees 'traitors' who weren't willing to work to develop the beleaguered firm.
More than 88,000 employees will be fired from the public sector unit (PSU), as government will privatise the company, he said.
In a video of an event held Monday at Kumta in Uttara Kannada district, Hegde is heard saying, "BSNL has a system filled with traitors. I am using accurate words to describe them." He further says that even the Narendra Modi-led government was unable to address the problems faced by the PSU.
"The government has given money, people require services and there is infrastructure. Yet, they (BSNL employees) don't work. PM talks of Digital India, has provided funds and technology. Yet, they are not willing to work," he said, adding that the central government will repair the firm by privatising it.
BSNL has become a black mark for the entire country and we will finish it. The central government will introduce disinvestment policy and close BSNL and the space will be occupied by private parties in the coming days, he added.