Bhubaneswar, Nov 6 Amid the ongoing war of words over Leader of Opposition (LoP) Naveen Patnaik's recent allegation of "betrayal" during an election meeting in poll-bound Nuapada, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Thursday hit back, accusing the opposition party of having engaged in multiple acts of betrayal during previous elections.
Addressing a public meeting at Komna block in the Nuapada Assembly constituency, CM Majhi criticised Patnaik and other BJD leaders for labelling BJP candidate Jay Dholakia, the son of late BJD Nuapada MLA Rajendra Dholakia, whose death necessitated the bypoll, as a "traitor".
CM Majhi remarked that it would have been better if the scriptwriter behind the speech given by Patnaik, who is known for his decency, had clarified the meaning of "traitor".
He went on to cite several incidents which, he alleged, reflected betrayal by the BJD when it was in power.
"Didn't the BJD commit betrayal when it brought a Congress leader and fielded him as its candidate in the Bijepur elections? Who lured away the BJP’s declared candidate in Kakatpur by offering him a minister’s post? The BJD should answer that. Similarly, the then Leader of Opposition from the Congress in the Narla-Kesinga region of undivided Kalahandi was also inducted into the BJD. Who betrayed whom at that time?" CM Majhi asked.
"Therefore, it does not suit the BJD president to brand the family of late Rajendra Dholakia as traitors when the party itself has been involved in several such incidents in the past," he added.
CM Majhi further targeted the BJD for fielding what he termed an "outsider", Snehangini Chhuria, who hails from the Atabira area of Bargarh district, as its candidate for the Nuapada bypoll.
He said that "an affectionate and hardworking local youth like Jay Dholakia is the most suitable candidate" to represent the constituency.
The Chief Minister stated that the vision of a Viksit Odisha cannot be achieved without the development of Nuapada and assured that Dholakia would complete the unfinished work of his late father.
Earlier in the day, Majhi along with several senior BJP leaders and the party's candidate for the Nuapada bypoll, Jay Dholakia, participated in a grand roadshow at Komna block of the district.
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