Berhampur: Mounting a stinging attack on the BJD government in Odisha over its performance, BJP heavyweight and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday claimed that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will fail to retain power in Odisha as people are already saying ‘bye-bye’ to him.
“Naveen Babu is not coming back here. People of Odisha have already said bye-bye to him. Naveen Babu is not required in the state,” Shah claimed while addressing an election rally of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at Sorada in Ganjam.
Asserting that a BJP Chief Minister will take over after the twin elections in the state, the BJP stalwart claimed that the Naveen Patnaik-led government has pushed the state back by 50 years.
Therefore, people of the state have made up their mind to oust BJD from power and vote BJP to power to ensure speedy development and a prosperous future, he said.
Coming down heavily on the CM, the Home Minister said that while Prime Minister Narendra Modi is providing rice for the poor, Naveen puts his own photograph and tells people that the rice is given by him.
Taking a dig at Naveen, he said instead of distributing empty bags to people, he can then provide 2.5 kg extra rice over and above what PM Modi is sending.
Stating that around 50 crore people across the country are getting the benefits of Ayushman Bharat Yojana, Shah said people of Odisha are deprived of its benefit at Naveen is not implementing the scheme. “Naveen Babu thinks that because of ‘Ayushman Bharat’, his popularity will come down,” he said, adding that Naveen Babu is leaving after June 1 as BJP is set to form government after the elections.
Stating that not a single village in Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh is devoid of roads, the Home Minister said 6,412 villages in Odisha have no roads and if BJP is voted to power, roads will be built in every village in two years.
Shah said PM Modi has enhanced the pride of Odisha by making Droupadi Murmu the President of India, while the famous Konark Wheel was chosen for G-20 meet branding.
Hitting out at the BJD government over Ratna Bhandar of Jagannath Temple in Puri and the Heritage Corridor Project, the Home Minister said in the name of Parikrama Project, temples and mutts were demolished.
Lamenting that all four gates of Jagannath Temple are not being opened for devotees, the BJP leader asked the Chief Minister to tell people as to where is the original key of the Ratna Bhandar.
Seeking to know as to who made the duplicate key of Ratna Bhandar, he asked whether it has been opened with the duplicate key. “We will make the Ratna Bhandar inquiry commission report public within six days of forming government in the state,” Shah said.
Attacking the CM over the consecration ceremony of Ram Temple in Ayodhya, the BJP leader said when the entire country was celebrating the Ram Utsav, Naveen government adopted different methods to stop people from participating in the event. “I want to tell Naveen Babu that those who obstruct the Ram Utsav celebrations will never be forgiven by the people of Odisha,” he said.
Asserting that Modi has left no stone unturned to ensure development and prosperity in the country, the Home Minister said Modi Ji has a track record of 10 years, and a roadmap for the next 25 years of Bharat says.
