BHUBANESWAR : The Congress on Monday expelled senior leader and Jatni MLA Suresh Kumar Routray for six years for indiscipline and anti-party activities.
The action against the senior leader was taken following complaints that he was campaigning for his son Manmath Routray, who has been fielded by the BJD from the Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha constituency.
A show cause notice was recently issued to Routray by the chairman of OPCC disciplinary committee Santosh Singh Saluja on the basis of the complaints.
General secretary of the All India Congress Committee KC Venugopal stated in the expulsion order that the Congress president has taken note of the complaints of indiscipline and anti-party activities against Routray. “The Congress president has approved the expulsion of Suresh Routray from the party for six years with immediate effect,” he added.
Routray, however, said that the party action against him was unjustified. The veteran leader said he will soon write to the high-command against his expulsion. “For the last 50 years, I have been working for Congress. I am still in Congress and will remain forever in the party,” he said.
Routray had announced his retirement from electoral politics during the budget session of Assembly in February. However, he was seen campaigning for his son Manmath in several parts of the Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha constituency after he was announced as the BJD candidate from the seat.
Routray is a six time MLA from Jatni and has been associated with the Congress since over five decades.