At a time when the BJD and the BJP are at loggerheads over the Mahanadi row reeking of petty politics ahead of the rural polls, the Congress displayed a measure of sagacity and civility by calling an all-party meet to resolve the problem with senior party man and leader of Opposition (loP) Narasingha Mishra at the helm of affairs.
However, the irony is that the Congress that sought to resolve the problem through a united fight and consensus building revealed its own lack of cohesion with a few of its leaders jumping into in verbal war over PCC chief Prasad Harichandan skipping the meet.
Mishra took the initiative of holding the all-party meet for taking views of leaders across party line on steps to be taken to sort out the water sharing row pertaining to the Mahanadi with the Chhatisgarh Government and the Centre after his repeated offer for convening such a meet did not find any response from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik. Though the BJD faced criticism for neither convening the meet nor
attending the one called by the loP, exposing not just its arrogance and lack of faith on the other parties, but its attempt to monopolize public support in its favour, Mishra was relied upon as the all-party meet was attended by most of the opposition parties, including the BJP.
The all-party meet not just slammed BJD’s decision for its unilateral fight, but took some crucial decisions. Union Petroleum Minister and State BJP pathfinder Dharmendra Pradhan also appreciated the all-party meet and condemned the BJD approach to go solo in order to hide the faults of the State Government over the last 16 years in neglecting Mahanadi water sharing issue with Chhatisgarh. For a time, it appeared it was going all in Congress’s credit, but an ugly exchange of words by two Congress leaders, Niranjan Patnaik and Tara Prasad Bahiniati upset the apple cart against the party.
Targeting PCC chief Harichandan, while Patnaik told that those who did not attend the meet organized for the larger interest of the State as traitors, Bahinipati said only Congress MlAs were invited to the meeting. Harichandan also downplayed the row over his nonattendance in order to show that the State Congress was united.
But Harichandan’s and some other Congress leaders’ claim on the unity of the party had few takers. The grapevine has it that if the Congress is not able to get rid of its years-old infighting, even loP Mishra’s humble bid to take everybody for putting up a united fight may go in vain since the reliability of the party taking the lead is a vital question.