BHUBANESWAR: Borrowing a slogan from Mamata Banerjee, Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik kickstarted the BJD’s 10-day padayatra from a slum locality of Bhubaneshwar.
The Biju Janata Dal supremo is hoping to beat back the BJP’s challenge to his rule with the slogan ‘Maa, Mati and Manisha’ (Mother, Motherland and People). It is derived from Mamata Banerjee’s "Maa Mati Manush" which paid her dividends in the 2009 general election and the 2011 Assembly election in West Bengal.
Launching the 10-day Jana Samparka Padayatra from the Mahishakhala slum in Ekamra Assembly constituency in Bhubaneswar, Naveen Patnaik said the BJP is building castles in the air. "The people of Odisha will give them a befitting reply as they have rejected them in the past too," he said.
The chief minister said his brought poverty in Odisha by 25 per cent during the BJD's 17-year rule. "The state tops the list of poverty reduction," he claimed.
Stating that his party believes in action, the chief minister added, “Our aim is to make Odisha No.1 state in the country.”
BJD vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra said the party’s campaign would highlight the anti-people policies of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre. Several BJD leaders participated in the padayatra highlighted the achievements of the BJD government and alleged negligence by the central government.