Cuttack: The colour of a statue of legendary leader Biju Patnaik in Odisha’s Cuttack city was changed in a mysterious manner, triggering a controversy with opposition BJD holding the BJP government responsible for the act.
Biju Patnaik’s followers were upset after the statue, located near Mangala Mandir Chhak in Mahanadi Vihar in the city, was mysteriously changed.
Locals said the statue, which was earlier green, has now been repainted in golden yellow colour. However, it is still not clear as to who changed the colour of the statue and why.
The Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC) has claimed that it is unaware of the repainting and colour change. The sudden colour change of the statue, which was unveiled in 2018, has sparked curiosity among the people with many criticising the move.
Meanwhile, the issue was raised in the state Assembly with BJD MLA from Banki Debi Ranjan Tripathy blaming the state government for the colour change. BJP was yet to make any comment on the issue.
The incident has triggered discussions in political circles and locals, who are demanding answers regarding the unauthorized modification.
The incident comes barely a month after unidentified miscreants vandalised the statue of Biju Patnaik at Umar village in Cuttack district.
