No Provision For ‘Super CM’ In Constitution: Jayanarayan Mishra Questions 5T Initiative Of Odisha Govt

Bhubaneswar: Senior BJP leader and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Jayanarayan Mishra on Monday questioned the rationale behind 5T initiative of the Odisha government and its relevance in an administrative set up.

“Is it a department? If so, where is its office, at Rajiv Bhawan, Lok Seva Bhawan or Kharavela Bhawan? Which minister heads this department?” he asked during the zero hour of the Assembly.

Seeking clarification from the government, he further asked as to why no discussion is being held on it in the Assembly.

Later speaking to the media, Jayanarayan alleged that 5T was created to diminish the authority of Chief Secretary and Additional Chief Secretaries. “It has unnecessarily created a breach in the state bureaucracy and is undermining the efficiency of other departments. The government cannot act on its whims and fancies. The entire administrative charge cannot be handed over to a junior officer by creating a separate ‘power centre’ and relegating those senior to him,” he stressed.

There is no provision for ‘Super Chief Minister’ in our Constitution, he added.

Government chief whip Prasant Muduli countered the LoP, saying that 5T is Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s vision. “5T might not be a particular department, but it is the vision of the CM and aims at effective functioning of government machinery,” he said.

After returning to power for the 5th time in a row, Naveen launched the 5T model of governance under the ‘Mo Sarkar’ programme to bring transparency and provide good governance. Private secretary to CM, VK Pandian was made the secretary of 5T. Following this, Pandian, who earlier used to confine himself to the chief minister’s office, started touring different districts to supervise the activities of various departments.