Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday, 16 September accused the previous Samajwadi Party (SP) government of demanding bribes for issuing every medical licence in the state, making the charge during his visit to Gorakhpur for the inauguration of the IMA Charitable Blood Centre.

The bribery allegation

Without explicitly naming the SP, Chief Minister Adityanath referred to the previous administration directly, saying: 'The government at that time used to demand money for every licence. I used to tell them that we would provide all the facilities required, but we would not pay a single rupee as a bribe... When you work hard, God also supports you.' The remarks drew immediate attention given their pointed reference to what analysts see as a long-running rivalry between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the SP ahead of state-level political cycles.

Healthcare transformation claims

CM Adityanath used the occasion to highlight what he described as a sweeping overhaul of healthcare infrastructure in eastern Uttar Pradesh. He noted that BRD Medical College in Gorakhpur has evolved into a super-speciality hospital now recognised as a centre for treating diseases including Encephalitis, and that an AIIMS now operates in the city alongside two medical colleges and four universities.

'Earlier there was only one hospital in eastern Uttar Pradesh where four patients used to share one bed,' he said, contrasting it with the current scenario. He also pointed out that dialysis — once available only in Lucknow — is now accessible in Gorakhpur, with 10 beds in each district hospital offering the facility free of cost under a government scheme.

Medical education expansion

Adityanath highlighted a near-tripling of MBBS seats in the state, from 4,600 previously to more than 13,500 now. Postgraduation seats have reportedly doubled, and the number of nursing colleges has increased alongside new paramedical courses and institutes. He also announced centres of excellence being developed at IIT Kanpur for MedTech and at Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences (SGPGI) in Lucknow.

Blood donation and civic appeal

Urging citizens to donate blood at the newly inaugurated centre, the Chief Minister said: 'Medical facilities, equipment and medicines can be made to suit modern standards but blood cannot be made. It is a symbol of compassion where a donor saves a life of a recipient.' He also noted that Guru Shri Gorakshnath Chikitsalaya has launched what he described as the first ICU in eastern Uttar Pradesh alongside the blood bank.

The inauguration marks another in a series of healthcare announcements from Gorakhpur — the Chief Minister's home constituency — as the state government seeks to consolidate its development narrative ahead of future electoral cycles.