Will the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik take a delegation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the Mahanadi row before moving to the Supreme Court for JusticeIJ
This is being discussed in the corridors of power now.
A senior State Minister suggested Patnaik at the State Cabinet meeting held on September 18 to meet the Prime Minister before approaching the apex court.
Other political and NGO leaders are also of the view that let a delegation led by the Chief Minister meet the Prime Minister to urge him to stop the construction of dams over the Mahanadi.
Politically, it would be a rewarding step for the ruling BJD if the Prime Minister asks the Chhattisgarh Government to halt the construction of barrages unlike Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti.
If the Prime Minister remains noncommittal then the BJD would have upper hand saying the NDA Government continues to show apathy towards Odisha, it is argued.
like Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalitha approaching the Prime Minister before going to the Supreme Court over construction of the dam on river Cauvery by the Government of Karnataka, Patnaik needs to exhaust this scope, feels the senior Minister.
However, another Minister of the Patnaik Cabinet has rejected such a move, saying, “It will not be beneficial for the State as the NDA Government is continuing to show apathy towards Odisha like the UPA Government did.”
Many outside the State Government are of the view that even though the State Government is consulting legal experts to approach the Supreme Court and the National Green Tribunal (NGT), there is nothing wrong in exhausting the last resort of meeting the Prime Minister to settle the Mahanadi water dispute.