Bhubaneswar: Politics over the alleged scuffle between Odisha’s Leader of Opposition (LoP) Jayanarayan Mishra and a woman police officer gained more heat on Thursday with former IPS officer and senior BJD leader Arup Patnaik firing fresh salvo at the BJP stalwart.
Without taking the name of Jayanarayan Mishra, the ex-IPS officer lashed out at the BJP leader accusing him of having committed non-bailable offence by assaulting the woman police officer at Sambalpur on Wednesday.
Speaking at a gathering of BJD workers in Bhubaneswar, Patnaik said, “The person, who was seen pushing, is yet to have a face-to-face encounter with us in a similar situation. He can visualise the consequences if such a situation crops up.”
The retired IPS officer further stated that he is no longer in uniform now and hopes to have an encounter with the person. “Let the person confront me,” he said in a veiled challenge to the senior BJP leader.
The IPS-turned-politician wondered as to how Mishra was roaming around despite having assaulted the police officer on duty.
Reacting sharply to the BJD leader’s remarks, senior BJP leader Golak Mohapatra said such statements from a former IPS officer are unacceptable. The leader of opposition must be held in high esteem and Mishra should be shown due respect, he said.
Referring to the murder of Health Minister Naba Kishore Das, he said the manner in which senior leader was killed by a policeman in broad daylight and the state government’s response raised suspicion that everything was done in a pre-planned way.
Accusing Odisha Police of acting as a tool for the ruling BJD, Mohapatra said it is clear that there is threat to the life of the LoP and the statements of the senior BJD leader have validated this.
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