BJD Won’t Return To Power In Odisha Till V K Pandian Is Around: Prasanna Patasani

Bhubaneswar: Former Lok Sabha member from Bhubaneswar Prasanna Patasani on Tuesday said that he was forced to quit the BJD because of ex-bureaucrat and party leader V K Pandian.

The former MP added BJD’s return to power in Odisha is unlikely till Pandian continues in the party. “I had to quit BJD because of V K Pandian and the popular government led by Naveen Patnaik was unseated due to him. It hurts when a person like me who was a founding member is forced to quit the party. After quitting BJD, I joined the BJP,” said Patasani.

He seconded BJD leader Amar Satpathy, who directly blamed party president Naveen Patnaik for the debacle in the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections and urged him to own up the responsibility.

The former Bhubaneswar MP also raised questions about Pandian’s retirement from active politics. He claimed that the confidante of former CM Naveen, still wields considerable influence in the regional party.