The Congress, which had been staging demonstrations with others under the banner of IIM Action Committee, on Monday parted ways and blamed that BJD and BJP are not keen to have the proposed IIM, Odisha established at Sambalpur.
“Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Prime Minister Narendra Modi are neglecting Sambalpur on the matter of IIM and other developmental issues,” Congress activists said at a meeting Golebazar here.
They said they would go to the people and inform them that both Modi and Patnaik are not at all interested to establish IIM at Sambalpur.
“The BJP Government at the Centre changed norms for Odisha in respect of establishment of an IIM while the norms have remain unchanged for other State,” alleged Congress district secretary Jay Shankar Mishra.
He further alleged that the BJD is now all set to take advantage of the changes as it doesn’t want the proposed IIM be established here.
Claiming that MCl and Railway division headquarters were set up at Sambalpur and the most prestigious IIMC at Dhenkanal during Congress rules, party activists said the BJP should take up it as a challenge to establish the IIM at Sambalpur.
“Two Ministers in the Modi Government are from western Odisha. Similarly, eight out of 10 BJP MlAs are from this region. It is an appropriate time for the BJP MPs and MlAs to prove their ability,” said Surekha Sahu, a senior leader of the party.
The Congress leaders also rose to mention in some placards that “Naveen and Narendra are two brothers.”
At the end of the meeting, they burnt the effigies of Patnaik and Modi. Former district Congress president Raj Kishore Das was and many women leaders were present on the occasion.