Bhubaneswar: Under attack over his reported statement about working for Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), newly-appointed Odisha Governor Braj Mohan Ram on Thursday came out with a clarification.
Clarifying his reported remarks about strengthening the BJP organisation in Odisha after assuming office, the Governor designate denied having made such a statement, and stated that he would work with all stakeholders and was now above party politics.
“No, I did not say this. I said that I will work in coordination with everyone. I am above party politics now, but the party I belong to is my capital. I will always have affinity and love for that party. But I will not work for any particular party. Hum sabke hain, sab hamare hain,” Ram was quoted by ANI as saying.
Ram’s clarification comes amid widespread outrage over reports suggesting that he had expressed an intention to strengthen the BJP’s organisational presence in Odisha following his appointment as Governor.
The reported statement of Ram triggered a political row in Odisha with opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Congress mounting a scathing attack on him over his future plans in the state.
Ram, a three-time former MP from Jharkhand, was appointed as the Governor of Odisha on October 12 by President Droupadi Murmu.