Sriballav Panigrahi: A Leader Like No Other!

I first met Sriballav Panigrahi in 1960 at the erstwhile Gangadhar Meher (GM) College, Sambalpur. In the following year, he was elected as the president of the student council of the college. I was also elected as the joint secretary. Niranjan Patnaik, who later became a minister and Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee president, was elected as the general secretary.

It was then that I got a chance to know Sriballav Babu from close quarters. Inspired by the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi, he would drape Khadi from top to bottom. From his personality, it was clear to me that he would become a prominent public figure in the future. His speeches used to be very powerful and to the point.  He was extremely frank and showed no hesitation while speaking unpalatable and harsh truths.

From the beginning, he was an idealistic person who believed in social service. He was born at Bargaon village near Sambalpur into a family of freedom fighters. After getting a degree in law from Madhusudan Law College, Cuttack, he started practising as an advocate at Sambalpur Bar. But, he always wanted to take an active role in serving the people and was soon made the president of District Congress Committee (DCC) of Sambalpur (he was widely believed to the youngest DCC president in the country).

In 1972, state Congress president Brajamohan Mohanty became the Minister of Revenue, Mines, Irrigation, Law and Commerce in the Cabinet led Nandini Satpathy. I was appointed as his private secretary. Sriballav Babu was then a strong and powerful leader of the party. An MLA of Sambalpur, he became the chief whip.

In 1973, during the cabinet reshuffle, he was appointed as a Cabinet Minister. At the age of 32, he was among the youngest cabinet ministers in India and was given the Education Department. This time again, I came in close contact with him.

Soon this government fell and Sriballav Babu again emerged victorious in the 1974 elections. He was re-elected from Sambalpur and was once again sworn in as a cabinet minister in Nandini Satpathy-led government. I became his private secretary. This was when I really got a deep insight into his working style and his unique personality. He was allocated key portfolios like Revenue, Education, Food and Supplies.

Honesty, integrity and truthfulness were the mantras of his life. A life in politics is literally opposite to such values. It was indeed surprising how a politician could possess all these virtues in totality. His speeches in the assembly were of very high quality. Members of the opposition failed to find fault with his irrefutable arguments. He had the extraordinary ability to master all issues related to governance and could grasp complex legal/procedural issues very quickly. He was seen as a very bright, knowledgeable and efficient minister in Satpathy’s Cabinet.

During his visits to Sambalpur, as a minister, he used to stay in his small and dark rented accommodation near the Municipality Office rather than the stately Circuit House. During his visits to different areas, his and his staff’s accommodation and food expenses were borne by him and his team themselves. Not only did he practise integrity himself, but expected the same from his  officers and all the members of his family.

His contribution to the development of the state, especially Western Odisha, is exemplary. He had a major role in the establishment of Western Odisha Development Council, KBK, Mahanadi Coalfields Limited and the Railway Division.

He was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1984, 1991 and 1996. As a Parliamentarian, he created a formidable reputation as a competent, capable and strong member. His services were often sought by his party to participate in important Parliamentary debates. He was made a member of important committees like Estimates Committee and Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to enquire into the Stocks Scam. He was also the Chairman of the Standing Committee on Petroleum and Chemicals in 1993. This was a prestigious appointment and widely believed to be a minister-ranked position.

He was a worthy son of Odisha. In 2015, when the country and the state expected more from him, the light went out of his life and he breathed his last on July 9.

(The writer is a former Vice-Chancellor, Utkal University of Culture, and former Collector & District Magistrate, Sambalpur)