BHUBANESWAR: Former speaker of Odisha Assembly Kishore Kumar Mohanty was on Wednesday appointed as the Chairman of Western Odisha Development Council (WODC).
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik approved the name of Mohanty two days after the resignation of Padmini Shekhar Deo from the post of chairperson of WODC on June 16.
Deo, who had two more years left for the completion of her tenure, had said that she resigned on the advice of the Chief Minister.
A three-time MLA from Jharsuguda Assembly constituency, Kishore Mohanty was the Speaker of Odisha Legislative Assembly from August 2008 to May 2009, after his predecessor Maheshwar Mohanty stepped down from the coveted post following a harassment case filed by a former lady staff of the Assembly. Kishore Mohanty was also a member of the Rajya Sabha from August 2009 to April 2012. In the recent elections to the Assembly, Kishore Mohanty was defeated from Jharsuguda constituency.