SAMBALPUR: Senior BJP leader and Sambalpur MLA Jayanarayan Mishra on Saturday stirred a fresh controversy by terming the integration of Koshal region with Odisha a “historic blunder”.
Mishra made the statement while addressing a gathering during disbursal of the second instalment of the Subhadra Yojana money for women. The Sambalpur MLA, who rose to speak immediately after the recital of ‘Bande Utkal Janani’, the state song of Odisha, first criticised the district administration saying, “There can be no state anthem but only one national anthem. Still, I don’t understand what is the point of reciting it on this stage.”
Referring to the mention of only Utkal in the song, Mishra said, “The people of Sambalpur should know that Utkal refers to Cuttack, Puri, and Balasore. Odisha, as a separate state, was formed due to the integration of Utkal, Koshal, and Kalinga regions. Then, why do we sing praises of Utkal only, and not Kalinga or Koshal? What mentality is this?”
He alleged the people of Koshal, which comprises western Odisha, have been historically neglected on all fronts. “You are exploiting us, our wealth, our mines, our agriculture, our forests... We were already exploited on many fronts, and now you are trying to exploit us culturally too. We had merged with Odisha and also participated in the movement for its sake. But now we regret that decision. It was a historic blunder, and we have admitted it on many occasions,” he said.
The statement coming from a senior leader like Mishra has raised eyebrows with many questioning his motives behind making it on a stage when his own party’s government was celebrating the International Women’s Day by disbursing money under Subhadra scheme to the women of the region.
The integration of Koshal with Odisha has been a topic of hot debate for many years, with some demanding greater autonomy for the region. There has been a movement for a separate Koshal state but lost steam in the recent years.
Mishra has earlier been vocal on the issue of regional imbalance and neglect of western Odisha region. As leader of Opposition in the last Assembly, he had frequently raised the issue while targeting the Naveen Patnaik government for ignoring the development and progress of the western Odisha districts.
However, his latest outburst not only hints at the growing rift between him and his party but also an attempt to embarrass the BJP government. The veteran leader had not been included in the Mohan Majhi cabinet. Days after the saffron party government was formed in the state, Mishra had alleged that he had been completely sidelined in the party.