BHUBANESWAR: Even as political observers were busy assessing the impact of the resignation of Dilip Ray and Bijay Mohapatra from the BJP on Friday, the saffron outfit maintained that it will have no impact on the party.
Stating that Ray is using the plank of Rourkela’s development only for his personal benefit, vice-president of the State BJP Sameer Mohanty alleged that since CBI is investigating the complicity of the former Union Minister in the coal scam during his tenure as the Coal Minister, he was putting pressure on the Central and State leaders to withdraw the case against him. “But the BJP cannot help him on the issue,” he said.
Referring to the demands for which Ray quit the party, Mohanty said work on converting the bridge over Bramhani river from four to six lanes has already started. But the State Government is delaying work on the pretext of forest land and tree felling, he said and added that the upgradation of IGH, Rourkela to super specialty hospital has also been stalled as the State is not releasing 40 per cent of the project cost as per the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY).
Without questioning Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik over the delay in completion of these projects, Ray is criticising the Centre, Mohanty said. He also asked why Ray has not raised the issue of delay in completion of a barrage and bridge on Koel river for which the Chief Minister had laid the foundation stone on July 9, 2013.
He also criticised Mohapatra for always trying to create groups within the party. When he failed to create groups in BJP, he quit. “Were these two gentlemen, who have resigned, in the BJP? The duo had not attended any meeting of the party since a long time. The BJP is a big party which never ignores any of its party leaders. Their resignation will have no effect on the party,” he said.