Don’t Cross Laxman Rekha, Congress Leader Bijay Patnaik Advises 5T Secretary V K Pandian

Bhubaneswar: Remembering former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi on his 79th birth anniversary, Odisha Congress Campaign Committee chairman Bijay Patnaik here on Sunday slammed the state government, accusing it of going against the spirit of 73rd amendment to the Indian Constitution aimed at decentralisation of power.

The former Odisha chief secretary alleged that power is now centralised at Third Floor (an euphemism for the Chief Minister’s Office), which refers to one person, the private secretary of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. “There is a need to make panchayati raj institutions self-reliant with funds, functions and functionaries. The state government, however, is working against it,” he alleged.

Later speaking to reporters, Bijay Patnaik advised bureaucrats not to cross the ‘Laxman Rekha’ (strict convention or a rule). “How people treat a government employee should not be a topic of discussion in political circles,” he said, referring to the ink attack 5T secretary VK Pandian in Puri’s Satyabadi on Saturday.

The Congress leader further said that the officer should refrain from misusing his power and indulging in political activities. “The tours being undertaken by Pandian across Odisha is nothing but a drama. And the CM is also a party to it. People are being brought to meeting venues and officers are accordingly being given targets. The complaints received by him are also not real. I have been travelling to several places and I can tell from my experience that there is none to hear the grievances of the people in the state,” he added.