BHUBANESWAR:Alleging that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik did not spell out the State Government’s action plan on Mahanadi river water dispute with Chhattisgarh and take the Opposition into confidence, the Congress on Tuesday announced that party MLAs will meet President Pranab Mukherjee over the issue.
Announcing this in the Assembly during the afternoon session, Leader of Opposition Narasingh Mishra said he is prepared to take BJD MLAs in the delegation, if they want to be part of it. “But I know that you will not be part of the delegation,” he said.
Mishra said discussion will be held with all other political parties about the meeting with the President.
M
eanwhile, Leader of BJP Legislature Party KV Singhdeo criticised the CM for politicising the issue. “The CM does not want to resolve the dispute,” Singhdeo told mediapersons and asked why did he not take any action to stop construction by Chhattisgarh Government when he was in the know of things since 2001?
Singhdeo said the BJP will participate if an all-party delegation meets the President. He ruled out joining a Congress delegation.
Earlier, the House could meet for only two minutes in the pre-lunch session as Congress and BJP members created a ruckus over the statement of the CM on the Mahanadi issue. Speaker Niranjan Pujari had to adjourn the House till 3 pm as Congress and BJP members shouted slogans in the well.
Congress chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati, who tried to climb onto the Speaker’s podium, said, “The ruling party had stalled the House for two consecutive days without any issue. But Opposition wants a clarification from the CM on the action plan of the Government to resolve the Mahanadi issue,” Bahinipati said.
BJD spokesperson and MLA Dibya Shankar Mishra, however, said the CM has already indicated next course of action over the river issue after the discussion.
The CM had approached his Chhattisgarh counterpart and Centre in the tripartite meet in New Delhi to stop construction activities, but both Chhattisgarh and Central Government rejected the demand, Mishra added.