Chief Minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday said his party would have any truck with the BJP or the Congress and hoped that a Third Front would emerge after the general elections to provide good governance to the people of the country and the BJD would be part of this new alliance.
He was addressing a large gathering at Badamundilo village, six-km from here, after inaugurating and laying foundation stones of various projects.
He said the BJD has already clarified that it would maintain equidistance from both the Congress and the BJP in the elections as the Congress is a “corrupt” party and the BJP has become untouchable due to its “hidden communal agenda”.
Patnaik reiterated his old stance stating that the UPA Government at the Centre has been neglecting Odisha in the matters like inadequate railway infrastructure, mineral royalty, assistance to the victims affected in Phailin and Special Category State (SCS) status.
Odisha meets all criteria for SCS status except having an international boundary, but the Union Government has deliberately ignored the State’s “just demand”, he alleged, adding that in order to fulfil its political purpose ahead of the elections the UPA Government has announced SCS to the newly-created Seemandhra State.