BJP & BJD ‘Bonhomie’ Blossoms Again During Budget Session

Bhubaneswar: Even as around 18 Opposition parties boycotted President Ram Nath Kovind’s address to Parliament to protest against the three new agriculture laws, MPs belonging to the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD attended the formal inauguration of the Budget Session on Friday.

This was significant given the recent acrimony between the BJD and the BJP in Odisha over the alleged mismanagement of paddy procurement in Odisha.

Besides, the two parties have run-ins over the murder of a BJP leader at Mahanga in Cuttack district, with the saffron party accusing Minister Pratap Jena of being involved in the crime.

The BJP has also accused the Odisha government of trying to shield an accused in the rape and murder of a minor girl in Nayagrh as he was allegedly associated with Minister Arun Sahoo. The BJP had also questioned the government’s motive in ordering an SIT investigation instead of engaging the CBI to probe the crime.

Also Read: BJP, BJD War Of Words Over Cap On Lifting Parboiled Rice From Odisha

Notwithstanding their public acrimony, BJD MPs being present in Parliament during the President’s speech has once again fuelled speculations over the “political bonhomie” shared between the two Biggies of Odisha politics.

And such speculations are not without reason. Earlier too, the Naveen Patnaik-led party has come to the “rescue” of BJP when it came to contentious issues in Parliament. A few instances:

Ashwini Vaishnaw Election

BJD had backed the nomination of former bureaucrat and BJP leader Ashwini Vaishnaw for Rajya Sabha in July 2019. This despite the fact that the regional party had the numbers (113 out of 147 MLAs) in the state legislature to ensure victory in all three RS seats for which by-polls were held.

This had led the Odisha Congress President, Niranjan Patnaik, to lash out: “It was a drama being enacted by the BJD and BJP. Both parties have a secret understanding.”

However, Union Minister and BJP leader Dharmendra Pradhan had rubbished the charge of secret nexus between the two parties. “PM Narendra Modi had urged CM Naveen Patnaik to support his candidature and the latter agreed to it. There is need for a mutual understanding in democracy,” he had said.

Echoing this, Naveen also clarified that the BJD decided to bat for Vaishnaw following discussions with the PM and the Home Minister.

Earlier, BJD had also backed BJP’s Om Birla for the Lok Sabha Speaker’s post.

Also Read: Vaishnav RS Nomination: Dharmendra Hints At ‘Mutual Understanding’ In Democracy

J&K Bill

Again going the stance of other Opposition parties, the BJD had supported the resolution introduced in Parliament for revoking Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

Supporting the resolution, BJD MP Prasanna Acharya said, “Today in the real sense, Jammu and Kashmir has become an integral part of India… We are a regional party, but for us, the nation comes first. The freedom, integrity and sovereignty of Bharat Mata are paramount for us. Therefore, my party, our leader Naveen Patnaik and I completely support it.”

The BJD support came as a surprise as Naveen had been continuing to assert his party’s stand of maintaining equidistance both from the BJP and the Congress.

Also Read: Now, BJD Supports BJP’s Move To Pass J&K Reservation (Amendment) Bill In RS

Triple Talaq Bill

The BJD’s support shored up the numbers for the treasury benches to pass the Triple Talaq Bill in the Rajya Sabha after a 19-month wait.

In fact, Naveen  had even issued a whip to his party members to remain present in the Upper House to ensure the passing of the Bill.

This had drawn howls of double standards by the Opposition Congress in Odisha, especially as BJD’s support came just after the bitterly fought Assembly polls in 2019.

“The BJD and BJP engage themselves in a war of words during the election. The Chief Minister talks about the equidistance policy of his party. But his party openly supports the BJP in all matters in the Parliament. Hence, we need a clarification from the Chief Minister to know whether the state is now governed by the BJD or the BJP,” Congress chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati had said in the Assembly.

Also Read: Triple Talaq Bill: Congress Demands CM’s Clarification On BJD-BJP Nexus