A leader of tribal origin, Congress leader Hemananda Biswal rose from a nondescript village of Thakurpada in the district of Jharsuguda to pinnacles of height becoming Chief Minister twice -- from December 7, 1989 to March 5, 1990 and from December 6, 1999 to March 5, 2000. He achieved this success by virtue of his struggle, saga of suffering and dint of his arduous journey from the grassroots level. During his first tenure as CM, he was preceded by JB Patnaik and succeeded by Biju Pataik. During his second innings, he was preceded by Giridhar Gamang and succeeded by Naveen Patnaik. He was the president of OPCC from May 6, 1998 to December 27, 1999. Prior to it, he was Minister for Health & Family Welfare from 1985 to 1986. During 1995- 998, he was Deputy CM and was in charge of Panchayati Raj, Housing and Public Grievances and Pension Administration. He was also elected to the 15th Lok sabha from the Sundargarh constituency. As a tribal leader, he is in close proximity to Sonia Gandhi. Currently, he is the chairman of the OPCC Disciplinary Committee. In an interview to The Pioneer, Biswal spoke to Sugyan Choudhury on the prevailing political scenario and the many challenges confronting the Congress party.
What according to you shall be your party’s performance during the forthcoming 2019 general elections in Odisha?
Admittedly enough, we are not in that advantageous position right now. But then, we are improving for the better. The recent elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram tell a flattering tale in my ears. The exit polls have predicted that the Congress is coming back to power in full swing in Rajasthan. In Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh, the media observes that there is going to be a neck-and-neck contest. They also say that in Chhattisgarh, the Mayawati-Ajit Jogi alliance shall ensure some seats for them. The Mayawati alliance will not enter into any understanding with the BJP. Hence, a Congress Government is unmistakably coming to power. My home district Jharsuguda and Sambalpur are adjacent to Chhattisgarh and our people are working there in large numbers. They also report the same story of the Congress riding back to power in Chhattisgarh. If that would be the state of affairs in our neighbouring Chhattisgarh, it would have a strong impact in Odisha. Hence, I must answer you that the Congress will improve tremendously in the Odisha elections, both for Assembly and for Parliament. Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Odisha at the end of this month shall also pay us a rich dividend. As you saw Rahul Gandhi’s whirlwind campaign in the four States, similarly he will tour our State so that the Congress fares here remarkably.
Whom do you consider as the main rival to your party in the ensuing elections?
The BJP’s sound and fury for power in Odisha shall end not with a bang but with a whimper. A competition for its CM candidate has already begun. The Central Ministers are making a tall claim that they will come to power in Odisha. The recent elections in the four States are going to prove that the BJP empire is crumbling to pieces. People of India have shown their disenchantment towards the BJP and earth beneath its leaders’ feet in receding gradually. Hence, we have to fight with the BJD and not with the BJP as our competitor in Odisha.
There is also intermittent wrangling in your party when the elections are knocking at the door. What’s your opinion as the chairman of the PCC Congress Disciplinary Committee?
Yes, but such misunderstandings are natural as they happen in a joint family. But then, our friends and veteran leaders like Srikant Jena should not have commented and reacted like this at a crucial juncture of the party. Similarly, Krushna Sagaria, who resigned from the Assembly as a mark of protest against the Leader of Opposition, should not have done this as he is very much in the Congress and wishes to remain so.
Srikant Jena has resigned from all the offices he held in the party. Jitendra singh has observed that it is left to you to take action, if any, as the chairman of the disciplinary committee. What action are you going to take against Jena?
Disciplinary actions could be many. I can’t comment exactly what it could be. But then, I must request our friend Jena not to stretch the matter any further. All of us have pledged to stand united to bring the Congress back to saddle again. It pains me much that during 1998 I inducted Shri Jena into the party when I was the OPCC president and Giridhar Gamang was the CM. I can’t just think of taking any disciplinary action all of a sudden against a seasoned leader of our party, but I would request Shri Jena to sink and swim together with us in the larger interest of the party.
Are you going to contest the 2019 elections?
I have already declared that I am not going to join the fray any more. I have already projected my daughter Sunita Biswal to contest from the Sundargarh Parliamentary constituency. Of course, the pressure from the people of Kuchinda and from my people of Jharsuguda is mounting upon me to contest finally once more in 2019.
What is your observation on the BJD regime?
The BJD Government is virtually controlled by the bureaucracy. Political representatives and Ministers have no say. Money is being distributed in “Mo Gaon, Mo Vikash” programmes through videoconferencing, ignoring the recommendations of the Palli Sabha or Gramya Sabha. The Biju Yuva Vahini, a BJD creation, is running at the cost of the State exchequer, which is highly undemocratic and illegal. The Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana is a myth as the people in villages are in reality deprived of the same.
Is it that Rahul Gandhi is emulating the ideology of Naveen Patnaik relating to 33% women reservation as he has risen to the occasion just recently after Patnaik took the decision?
You are mistaken. Prior to Naveen Patnaik’s current stand, Sonia Gandhi had taken up the issue and there were discussions on it in the Parliament many times although Constitutional amendments to the effect have not taken place. The Congress is the first party to champion the cause of women reservation.
What do you think your party’s stand to enter into a post-electoral alliance when a need arises?
As I told you earlier, we will be competing with the BJD. In the State’s larger interest, we may enter into a post-electoral alliance with parties having secular stand. In politics, no one is no one’s enemy. In that case, an alliance may take place with the BJD depending upon the then prevailing political scenario.