In a move aimed at boosting Andhra Pradesh’s image and promoting the capital city Amaravati, Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu rolled out the red carpet for Microsoft co-founder and Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Chairman Bill Gates on February 16, 2026. The visit was intended to discuss expanding collaborations in education, health, agriculture, and technology-driven governance through the Gates Foundation. However, the high-profile engagement has instead sparked widespread backlash, damaging the state’s reputation rather than enhancing it. Instead of gaining mileage for Andhra Pradesh from Bill Gates’ visit to Amaravati, damage has been done to the state’s image. Amaravati’s High-Profile Gamble Turns Sour as Global Criticism Mounts Over Gates’ Associations and Past Remarks on India
The credit chori tricks adopted by Chandrababu for Amaravati promotion and publicity are tarnishing not only the capital but also Andhra Pradesh’s reputation. The plan by Chandrababu to forcefully bring the once-renowned tech giant Bill Gates to the state to promote Amaravati real estate business has backfired. With Bill Gates’ name appearing in the Epstein files amid sexual allegations he is facing, his visit to Amaravati has created a situation where instead of benefiting the state, it is causing harm. While national media was overflowing with praise for the Chandrababu-Bill Gates meeting and Gates’ arrival in Amaravati, national media and social media platforms are flooded with severe criticism.
Gates was invited to Amaravati by Chandrababu yesterday (16-02-2026) to discuss various projects in education, health, and agriculture supported by the Gates Foundation and their expansion. However, criticism has emerged in national media regarding Gates’ visit. Allegations have also surfaced that the American tech billionaire views “India as a lab for his products.”
The Epstein Files Controversy: What Sparked the Outrage?
Bill Gates Deeply Trapped in Epstein Files Controversy
Sexual Allegations.. Worldwide Criticism Against Gates
The name of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has also surfaced sensationally in the Jeffrey Epstein sex scandal that shook America. Jeffrey Epstein, who committed suicide in jail in 2019, was a criminal. In the recently released 3.5 million pages of Epstein documents by the US Justice Department, Bill Gates’ name is included. In one note, Epstein wrote that he provided medicine to Bill Gates, who was suffering from venereal diseases due to sexual activities with Russian girls. However, Gates has denied these allegations in 9 TV interviews. In an NPR podcast interview, Melinda Gates revealed that Bill Gates’ sexual relations with Jeffrey Epstein were the reason their 27-year marriage ended.
Gates Who Called India a Laboratory
In the Past, Protests and Allegations Against Gates Foundation
In the past, many protests have taken place in India against Bill Gates. Severe allegations have been made against the programs run by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Criticisms have emerged that through his foundation, experiments were conducted on poor people in two states in India. In May 2021, Bill Gates’ comments also drew strong opposition from Indians. In a podcast interview, when Bill Gates said that India is like a laboratory, intense anger was expressed. Similar opposition is coming against Bill Gates in African countries like Kenya. Already facing Indians’ anger over experiments, Gates’ name appearing in the Epstein files has caused his fame and reputation to crash to the ground. Many intellectuals opine that in this situation, Gates’ visit to Amaravati has done harm instead of good to the state.
Father-Son Duo Stuck Awkwardly After Royal Treatment in Amaravati
Instead of Doing Good.. Brought Bad Image with Gates’ Red Carpet Affair
The warm welcome extended to Gates, including reception at the airport by IT Minister Nara Lokesh and meetings at the Secretariat with Chandrababu Naidu and other leaders, has drawn sharp online criticism, with many questioning the decision amid the Epstein-linked controversies.
Social Media and National Media Erupt in Criticism
Tweets Against Gates.. National Media and Social Media Comments
Many Indians are opposing inviting Gates to the AI Impact Summit 2026 – The News Minute article.
Bill Gates’ name has come up multiple times in the Epstein files, and that’s why even his wife left him. He views India as a testing lab for his products and Indians as lab rats.. wrote Veena Jain on ‘X’.
Don’t Meet Gates
“Bill Gates’ name has come up multiple times in the Epstein files, and there are photos too. Even knowing all this, we shouldn’t meet him,” posted Anoop Dhote, Madhya Pradesh Kisan Congress In-charge, on ‘X’.
Bill Gates is saying he will make India a laboratory for testing his medicines and experiment on us under human trials – Prashant Bhushan’s post on X.
Charity as Plunder
Bill Gates is not donating to save the world; he is investing to take ownership. By taking over financing banks, weakening global protections, turning “Net Zero” into a weapon — the earth is becoming a mortgage, life is becoming an asset.
– Austin Bliss posted on ‘X’.
We won’t let Bill Gates set foot in Africa.. Kenya is not a laboratory.. Africa is not a testing ground.
– Post by New Direction Africa on ‘X’
Bill Gates is not a good person.. His wife also agrees with this
– Post by Lee David
Bill Gates is not a scientist.. not a doctor.. No one should take his advice on anything.. not even on vaccines.
– Clayton J. Baker
Never trust billionaires.. especially Bill Gates..
– A social media post
The visit, intended as a boost for Amaravati’s development and global partnerships, has instead highlighted deep divisions over Gates’ past associations and remarks, leaving Andhra Pradesh’s promotional efforts in controversy rather than acclaim.
