CUTTACK: The factional fight within the BJD in Cuttack played out in the open on Thursday during the birthday celebrations of party president Naveen Patnaik when two separate events were not only organised by rival leaders but also barbs exchanged.
Cuttack mayor Subhash Singh, district BJD president Prafulla Singh and several corporators marked the occasion by cutting a cake at the School for the Blind and Deaf in CDA Sector-10, while Rajya Sabha MP and former Barabati-Cuttack MLA Debashish Samantaray along with his supporters celebrated by distributing fruits to patients at the City Hospital.
Speaking to mediapersons, Samantaray asserted that his was the legitimate BJD function in Cuttack. “As a former MLA of Barabati-Cuttack, we are celebrating Naveen Babu’s birthday. Those holding separate events should be asked which is the real BJD. They are lower-level leaders,” he said. Reacting to the remark, Singh said, “If the mayor and the district president are lower-level leaders, then what does that make him? Debashish speaks whatever comes to his mind, and the party high command will take a decision on his comments.”
He added that Naveen Babu’s birthday is celebrated not only by party members, but also the public. “We are working as per the party’s principles,” he said. The district unit of the BJD had officially organised the programme, which was attended by most senior leaders and party workers, except Samantaray and his supporters.
