BHUBANESWAR: The Biju Janata Dal on Saturday hit back at Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and questioned his silence on the seizure of Rs 8 crore from a BJP legislator in Karnataka in March.After the union minister took potshots at Odisha government over rising corruption, Rajya Sabha member Sasmit Patra said the state has adopted a zero-tolerance policy against corruption and inefficiency in the government’s functioning.
Terming Pradhan’s allegations as baseless and unfortunate, the BJD national spokesperson said stringent action has been taken against 180 corrupt officials in last three years. While several among them have been dismissed from service and some given compulsory retirement, pension of some of them has been withheld.“The union minister knows Odisha is always appreciated at the national level for its strident stand against corruption,” he said.
Patra reminded that a Lokayukta raid on a BJP MLA of Karnataka had yielded Rs 8 crore ahead of the assembly election in March. “Who was the BJP observer of Karnataka election then? Why was he silent on the matter? Everybody knows the corruption in MCL at Talcher and who is patronising it,” he alleged. The BJD spokesperson said such baseless statements from the union minister are ridiculous as tainted leaders expelled from BJD are now being seen with the who’s who of the BJP in the state.
“Instead of appreciating the zero tolerance policy of the state government, it is shocking that the minister is politicising anti-corruption measures taken by the state. He should refrain from it and advise BJP-ruled states to adopt Odisha policy to check corruption,” Patra added.