New Delhi: Recalling the gallantry of former Odisha Chief Minister late Biju Patnaik in flying sorties and landing troops in Srinagar to repulse the attack by Tribal Lashkars in 1947, BJD MP from Puri Pinaki Misra on Tuesday urged the Centre to confer Bharat Ratna on the legendary leader of Odisha.
“Lt-Col Devan Ranjit Rai along with 17 soldiers of 1 Sikh regiment landed in Srinagar and saved Srinagar and Kashmir from falling into the hands of the Pakistani invaders. What the House must know and the nation must know is that the man who flew that plane was none other than Biju Patnaik, the tallest leader of Odisha,” Pinaki told Lok Sabha.
He said that the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had sought help from Biju Patnaik, who flew multiple sorties and took several batches of soldiers to Srinagar on October 27, 1947.
“In the past, we had urged the Centre to recognise the tremendous qualities of Biju Patnaik by giving him Bharat Ratna. Unfortunately, it has not happened,” he said.
Drawing the attention of Defence Minister iand ministers present in the House, Pinaki said that he hoped that this historical error will be retified in near future.
