BHUBANESWAR: Veteran BJP leader Bijay Mohapatra on Friday announced that he will continue to be in politics despite his defeat in Patkura election.
He, however, congratulated BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for successful execution of his ‘Kill Bijay’ project.
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Patkura election was like any other project launched by the Naveen Patnaik Government like Kalia and Ahaar schemes, Mohapatra told this paper and warned BJD leaders that power and position are not permanent in politics and like everything else these also have their end.
“They are in power now, tomorrow the situation may change, but I will continue to be in politics,” he said.
Coming down heavily on the Chief Minister for encircling the Assembly constituency (gherabandi) for three months by engaging 70 MLAs, including 14 Ministers and several senior leaders, Mohapatra said in his 40 years in Odisha politics he had not seen such an election.
From the beginning Naveen did not want election in Patkura. Though Naveen was fully aware about illness of Bed Prakash Agarwalla he fielded him from the segment, the BJP leader said and added that nowhere election process in an Assembly constituency drags on for three months.
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Stating that he is yet to analyse the reason behind his ‘shocking’ defeat, Mohapatra said even people of Patkura are not prepared to believe the result.
“The BJD managers can say what prompted them to position such a large fleet of party men and police in civil dress for the poll,” he said and criticised the district administration for its role in the election.
Mohapatra said, “result of Patkura election would not have affected the stability of the Naveen Patnaik Government and the aim was to prevent me from entering the Assembly.”
The BJD, however, dismissed all charges by Mohapatra. Former Minister Pratap Deb said BJD leaders have learnt ‘gherabandi’ from Mohapatra and reminded him how he had done so in the Rairangpur by-poll when Biju Patnaik was the Chief Minister.
“The claim of ‘gherbandi’ politics is absolutely false. In democracy, it is the voters, none else, who are the destiny makers,” he said.