BJD Not Part Of Mahagathbandhan: Naveen

Bhubaneswar: Ahead of the elections to both the State Assembly and Lok Sabha, BJD President and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday reiterated his party’s stand of maintaining equidistance from the BJP and Congress and ruled out the possibility of joining a grand alliance.

“As far as the mahagathbandhan is concerned, the Biju Janata Dal is not a part of it,” he told reporters here to a poser.

His statement assumed significance as it came a day after he had said in New Delhi that he would take some time to think about the idea of joining the grand alliance.

“We will continue with our policy of equidistance from BJP and Congress,” he clarified on Wednesday.

Earlier in December last year, Naveen had hinted at the possibility of a grand alliance with “like minded” parties following a meeting with Telengana Chief Minister and TRS President K Chandrasekahar Rao (KCR) at Naveen Niwas in Bhubaneswar.

KCR is leading an initiative to cobble up an alliance of non-BJP and non-Congress parties and has met several regional party leaders in this respect.

Responding to a separate question today, Naveen dismissed the speculation of a cabinet reshuffle ahead of the polls. “There is no thought of ministry reshuffle,” he said.

Talks of a cabinet reshuffle had gained traction after the recent resignation of Agriculture Minister Pradeep Maharathy.