Bhubaneswar/Balangir: Adrija Manjari Singh, who has alleged domestic violence against her husband Arkesh Narayan Singh Deo and in-laws, on Thursday questioned the ruling BJD for nominating one of the members of the Balangir royal family in the upcoming elections.
BJD has made Arkesh’s elder brother Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo its candidate for Balangir assembly constituency.
Last year, Adrija had filed a complaint of domestic violence against Arkesh and his in-laws at Dehradun police station in Uttarakhand. He had further alleged that Arkesh and his in-laws – AU Singh Deo, Bijaylakshmi Devi, brother-in-law Kalikesh and his wife Meghna Rana – were stopping him from going to Odisha.
Questioning the Chief Minister for giving party ticket to Kalikesh, she said that she greatly respects Naveen Patnaik for taking several steps for the empowerment of women in the state. “When I came to Odisha after my marriage, I saw that the Chief Minister was doing a lot for the women of the state. It is sad that despite being aware of what happened to me, his party has now given ticket to a member of the Balangir royal family.
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Saying she had no interest in joining any political party or campaigning for any candidate, Adrija said she would meet every family in the assembly constituency and share her ordeal. “What happened to me should not happen to any other person. He has committed so many atrocities on a woman in her own house. How will other people of Balangir be safe while they are there,” she said. Arkesh and Adrija got married in 2017.
Responding to Adrija’s claims, Arkesh accused senior Congress leader Narsingh Mishra of pulling a ‘politically motivated stunt’. “Since Congress’s defeat in the elections is almost certain after Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik filed his nomination papers from Kantabanji, Mishra and his party are trying to spread negativity through such politically motivated stunts,” he said. In 2019, Arkesh had contested the Balangir Assembly seat on a BJD ticket, but lost to Mishra.
