Bhubaneswar: With tension prevailing in Odisha’s arson-hit Sambalpur where curfew has been claimed, Opposition BJP and Congress on Saturday held the BJD government and police responsible for the large scale violence in the city.
BJP, which had sent a fact-finding team to the western Odisha city in the aftermath of arson, mounted a scathing attack on Naveen Patnaik government over situation there.
Soon after the BJP team returned to Bhubaneswar, senior party leader and MLA L B Mohapatra sought to know as to why Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is silent over Sambalpur violence.
Stating that the silence of the Chief Minister, Minister of State for Home and senior officers has surprised people, he told reporters that the Chief Minister himself should have monitored the situation and initiated immediate steps to prevent flare up.
Alleging that a youth was killed during violence, the senior BJP leader said the ruling BJD leaders who had earlier reacted sharply to remarks about ‘lawless’ Odisha are now maintaining silence.
Claiming that the violence has exposed ‘inefficiency’ of police, Mohapatra said adequate force should have been deployed in all the sensitive areas of Sambalpur.
Speaking in same vein, senior BJP leader Biranchi Tripathi said earlier police used to provide security during Hanuman Mahotsav, but the same was not provided this year.
Accusing the government of not taking action against those responsible for violence, he sought to know as to who is giving instruction to the police.
Accusing the state government of having failed miserably to handle the situation, Tripathi said the violence in Sambalpur has exposed the incompetence of the police.
Attacking the state government in same vein, senior Congress leader Bijay Patnaik said the arson in Sambalpur showed that the state government was not prepared for a situation like this.
Seeking to know as to why the government’s assessment went wrong, Patnaik said the attack on police showed that the government had failed.
Responding to the opposition allegations, senior BJD leader D P Mishra said the matter should not be politicised. Necessary action is being taken against the miscreants involved in the violence and rumour mongers, he said.
