Srinagar, October 25: Jammu and Kashmir governor Satya Pal Malik scrapped the insurance scheme deal on Thursday after the opposition criticised the decision of making it mandatory for all state government employees to buy medical insurance from Reliance General Insurance. The governor in an order on September 20, 2018, selected Reliance General Insurance for providing medical insurance to all state government employees. J&K Governor Satya Pal Malik Breaks Silence Over Article 35A, Says ‘Elections Neither for Delhi nor Me But for the People of J&K’

According to reports, the policy was expected to at least 3.5 lakh government employees, including the employees of PSUs, universities, autonomous bodies, local bodies and their family members. The scheme was made available to employees at Rs 8,777. During an interview to a TV channel, Malik said that it would take a couple of days to cancel the earlier order. Jammu And Kashmir DGP Dilbagh Singh Meets Governor Satya Pal Malik To Discuss Security Arrangement Ahead Of Urban Local Body Polls

Congress president Rahul Gandhi earlier in October slammed the governor’s decision. In a tweet, he said, “When your BFF is the PM, you can get the 1,30,000 Cr. Rafale deal, even without relevant experience. But wait. There’s more! Apparently, 400,000 JK Govt staff will also be arm twisted into buying health insurance ONLY from your company!”

The decision to cancel the deal with Reliance General Insurance comes at a time when Reliance Defence Limited was named in the Rs 59,000-crore Rafale deal controversy. The opposition parties are alleging that the Prime Minister help the Reliance defence in getting the offset contract in the deal.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 25, 2018 05:03 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).