Stating that Odisha has not developed during 50 years of Congress rule and 19 BJD regime, BJP national president Amit Shah on Tuesday called upon people to bring in a BJP Government in the 2019 elections. He described the Congress and the BJD as “two sides of a coin”.
He also said that it is time for the State to have an Odia-speaking Chief Minister after a long period. He said this while eulogising the role of Utkalgaurav Madhusudan Das in promoting Odia language and creating the State of Odisha on linguistic basis.
Earlier to his address at a largely-attended meeting of BJP leaders and workers of four districts, Cuttack, Kendrapada, Jajpur and Jagatsinghpur, at Salepur, Shah had visited Madhubabu’s ancestral house at nearby Satyabhamapur and garlanded his statue there.
Shah alleged that though the Modi Government at the Centre has provided assistance of Rs 5.13 lakh crore to Odisha during the last four years, the BJD Government has failed to utilise the funds for the State’s development and the money has been siphoned for other purposes breeding corruption.
“Even when the Centre has made provisions for toilets for each and every family, people of Odisha are still deprived of the benefits, because the one who is ruling the State fears that it would increase the popularity of PM Modi,” he said.
Odisha is rich in natural resources and youths, but the State has not seen development because it is being ruled by a Government which cannot even safeguard the Ratna Bhandar of Lord Jagannath in Puri Shreemandir, said Shah.
Earlier, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the remote of Odisha is in the hands of the mining mafia. The remote of Bhubaneswar and Delhi should be in hands of Modi.
He said the Modi Government is committed to the development of the poor and downtrodden.