After the reshuffle of the Ministry, members of the BJD in Sambalpur district are now not a happy lot. They had expected that at least one of the three MlAs of the district would get a berth, but in vain.
“We expected that either Dr Raseswari Panigrahi or Rohit Pujari will be a Minister in the recent ministry reshuffle of Naveen Patnaik. But nothing of the sort happened and we don’t appreciate such a decision,” said many supporters of Sambalpur MlA Dr Panigrahi.
Her supporters even went to the extent of making a protest on the road holding placards in hand saying -”Injustice to Sambalpur.” Supporters of Pujari also protested in Rairakhol and Sambalpur.
“After rise of the BJP, the decision of the Chief Minister to reshuffle ministry is a right step to prepare for the 2019 election. But injustice to whole of western Odisha and Sambalpur in particular has hurt people here and the BJD workers too,” many a party worker said openly. Even such a step may adversely affect the coming Municipal Corporation election of Sambalpur, they opined.
But there are many seniors in the party who don’t like the emotions of the party juniors. Both Dr Panigrahi and Er Pujari are the first timers and they are well placed also. While the former is the party’s spokesperson, the latter is the Deputy Chief Whip. Hence, from the very beginning Sambalpur district has got right berths in the Government and the party. So no injustice has been meted out to any MlA of the district, commented the seniors.
Meanwhile, BJD district president Dr Pramod Rath asked as to why the BJP was poking its nose into BJD party affairs.
On a BJP spokesperson’s view that injustice has been done to western Odisha by Naveen Patnaik, Rath said that the BJP by its wishful thinking of victory in 2019 polls was only in a fool’s paradise.