Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has said that he is no friend of the BJP even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi had called him a “Mitra” at a recent public meeting in Rourkela and praised him for his BJD’s support to the MMDR Bill in Parliament.
Now, participating in an interactive session here on Saturday, Patnaik, in an obvious bid to display the BJD’s opposition to the NDA, said his party was opposed to the new land Bill and examining the GST Bill.
Patnaik also alleged that the Modi-headed Central Government has cut down allocations of several welfare schemes for the State.
The Chief Minister further said ‘Achhe Din’ promised by the BJP before the general elections is yet to come.
A month ago, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi had alleged Patnaik is in a secret understanding with Modi to avoid effective investigation into the chit fund scams.
Replying to a question on his alleged indifference to Odia, Patnaik claimed that he is fluent in it. “I love Odia language very much. I have been delivering my speeches in Odia,” he said at the interactive session sponsored by a newspaper.
“I have always emphasised the need for translating our classic, ancient and modern language into English and other Indian languages and making them accessible to a large readership in the country and abroad,” he said.
Patnaik said a Hindi translation of Odia Sarala Mahabharata, which was recently released in New Delhi, is a step in the right direction.