Dama Holds Out Olive Branch To BJD!

Bhubaneswar: Veteran leader Dama Rout, who had launched a tirade against the BJD after his expulsion from the party a year ago, seems to be making subtle attempts to return to the party fold.

Talking about the outcome of the Bijepur by-election here on Saturday, Dama said the result is a clear message that the people of Odisha prefer the regional party over any national party. “It has been proved beyond doubt that the BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is invincible and the most favourite leader of the people of Odisha,” he added.

To a question on whether he was willing to return to the BJD, Dama said he was not averse to the idea. “I have worked with Biju Babu who had brought me to the BJD. After him, I have worked with Naveen Patnaik. I did not leave the BJD. Rather the party had expelled me,” he pointed out.

Asked about his relentless attack on the BJD leaders, including the party supremo, Dama claimed that he has never said anything against any BJD leaders. “I had raised my voice  against corruption, not any leader,” he averred.

Notably, the septuagenarian leader after resigning from the BJP on October 16 had told the media that he will consider joining the BJD if he gets an offer from the party supremo.

Dama was expelled from BJD on September 22 last year for anti-party activities after he had put the ruling party on the back foot by raising questions on a series of scams.

On November 23, 2018, he floated a new political outfit Biju Samatakranti Dal to fight against “gross misrule and corruption” of the BJD government. But the new party never really take off as no like-minded leader joined hands with him.

However, he was roped in by senior BJP leaders who invited him to join the party a month before the Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. Later, he joined BJP at its party office in New Delhi in the presence of the then party national president Amit Shah, Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan, BJP Odisha in-charge Arun Singh and Baijayant Panda on March 14 and appointed as convener of the state BJP campaign committee.

However, he recently expressed displeasure over being ignored in the Odisha BJP and later resigned from the party.