Babus Have Replaced Naveen Patnaik As Odisha CM: Dharmendra Pradhan

Bhubaneswar: Babus (bureaucrats) are ruling the roost in Odisha and from news reports, it appears that they have even replaced Naveen Patnaik as Chief Minister of the state,” Union Minister and senior BJP leader Dharmendra Pradhan told mediapersons here on Friday.

“And influential ministers of the state can be seen carrying umbrellas for them,” he quipped.

Dharmendra also blamed the local administration for the violence and arson in Sambalpur during Human Jayanti procession earlier this month. “The government’s inefficiency and governance deficit led to such an untoward incident during the traditional bike rally before the Hanuman Jayanti celebration in the western Odisha town. A tribal youth was also killed on April 14. The police action leaves a lot to be desired. It is a concerted attempt by the state to target the Hindu community,” he alleged.

The Union Minister further claimed that local administration did not cooperate with National Commission for Scheduled Tribes (NCST) Member Ananta Nayak, who visited the violence-hit Sambalpur on April 26 but failed to meet the family members of the deceased. “She has now sent a fact-finding team to the state and I am thankful to her for doing so,” he said.

“Maintaining peace does not mean torturing the majority community and threatening them with false cases. The Odisha government should follow Raj Dharma (duty of a ruler) and not discriminate people on basis of religion and caste,” he added.

Meanwhile, BJP national president JP Nadda has formed a four-member team to look into the incidents of violence during Hanuman Jayanti celebrations in Sambalpur.