Odisha Congress Endorses TMC Leader’s Claim Of BJD-BJP Togetherness

Bhubaneswar: Senior Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Derek O’Brien’s allegation that Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is with BJP has triggered a political row in the state with Congress endorsing the view that Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the saffron party are together.

Senior Congress leader and MLA Santosh Singh Saluja said the TMC leader’s claim is correct as everyone knows that both BJD and BJP have all along been together. However, the two parties criticise each other just to mislead people, he said.

Noting that BJD and BJP shared power and can a coalition government in Odisha from 2000 to 2009, Saluja claimed that the two parties may contest the elections together as partners.

Claiming that BJD is afraid of central investigating agencies like CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED), the senior Congress leader said the regional party has been supporting the BJP-led government on all major issues and measures in Parliament.

Terming the allegation ‘absurd,’ BJD leader Bhagirathi Sethi said the regional party is quite strong and there is no need for it to join hands with other political parties including BJP.

Senior vice-president of BJD and former Minister Prasanna Acharya also stated that the party has maintained equal distance from both BJP and Congress. BJD’s policy is not to align with any group or alliance against either BJP or Congress, he said.

It may be noted here that Derek had two days ago accused Naveen Patnaik of siding with fascism and claimed that his Biju Janata Dal (BJD) was unofficially with the BJP.