Bhubaneswar: Days after being booked for his alleged defamatory remarks against top leaders, Biju Janata Dal’s (BJD) Manmath Routray has lodged police complaints against Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi.
Routray filed two complaints in Capital Police Station in Bhubaneswar accusing the Chief Minister of having publicly made ‘racially derogatory’ and ‘obscene’ remarks while recently speaking separate public meetings.
In one complaint, he alleged that Majhi made an ‘unfortunate and racially derogatory’ remark at a public meeting by stating that girls of his own community in Keonjhar possessed dark skin and that he had to search for a bride in Mayurbhanj due to his preference for marrying a fair-skinned girl.
“This statement explicitly discriminates on the basis of skin colour and is deeply offensive. When a person holding a constitutional position consciously makes such a degrading statement based on race and skin colour, it constitutes a serious offence,” claimed Routray.
Claiming that such remarks adversely affect social harmony and dignity of communities, the BJD leader urged the police to initiate appropriate legal proceedings against the CM.
In another complaint, Routray alleged that the Chief Minister used an obscene word, the utterance of which in any context in a public place constitutes a criminal offence.
The same speech was circulated through electronic and social media to demean a community which has contributed to the heritage of the country, he claimed, adding that calling ‘Pandu’ in a demeaning manner does not only tarnish the reputation of particular person rather it demeans the entire community.
Urging the police to take the matter seriously, he sought appropriate legal action against the CM for his alleged damaging public remarks. “Such conduct from a person of high constitutional office not only hurts the harmony but also undermines the values of mutual respect integral to our society,” Routray said.
Notably, the BJD leader was recently booked for his alleged objectionable comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Majhi.
Bhubaneswar Cyber Police registered a case against Routray after the BJP’s Legal Cell lodged a complaint, accusing him of posting defamatory and misleading content on social media, targeting Modi and Majhi.
Routray has been booked under Sections 294(2), 296, 353(2), and 356(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, and also Section 67 of the IT Act.
Claiming that Routray’s posts were derogatory in nature and had the potential to “mislead the public and incite disharmony,” the BJP submitted videographs and photocopies of the ‘defamatory’ posts as evidence to the Cyber Police.
The ruling party made the point that Routray’s post was published with the intent to harm the reputation of India’s Prime Minister and the Odisha Chief Minister.
A former Air India pilot, veteran leader Suresh Routray’s son Manmath quit his aviation career and joined politics in 2023. In his electoral debut, BJD candidate Manmath lost to BJP’s Aparajita Sarangi by a margin of 35,152 votes in the 2024 Lok Sabha election from Bhubaneswar constituency.
