By IANS,
Bhubaneswar : Suspended Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader and Rajya Sabha member Pyari Mohan Mohapatra Friday accused Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik of violating the party’s constitution.
According to the BJD’s constitution, the party president has to call a state executive meeting once in six months. However, no such meeting has been held for three years, Mohapatra told reporters here.
The rebel leader also said Patnaik had ceased to be the BJD president since July 2010 as there has been no organisational election in the party.
Mohapatra said the Odisha Jana Morcha (OJM) formed by him was a part of the ruling party and would work to restore the lost internal democracy in the BJD.
He also accused Patnaik of not keeping the promises the BJD had made to the people during the 2009 state assembly elections.
Mohapatra, who was Patnaik’s non-official advisor for over a decade, was suspended from the party after he allegedly plotted a coup to unseat the chief minister.
Earlier this month, Mohapatra launched the OJM, a political forum to establish “internal democracy in the state’s ruling party”.
The forum has announced a massive gathering of about 50,000 people here Oct 28.
Responding to the allegations made by Mohapatra, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said that some people are attempting to obstruct the development of the state.
Without naming Mohapatra, Patnaik said, “It is immaterial for me who is with me and who is not. For me, the four crore people of the state are important. I want to work for them.”
Addressing a party rally at Berhampur town in his home district of Ganjam, about 180 km form here, the chief minister claimed that there were people who were trying to stab him in the back.