Odisha Jan Morcha (OJM) president Pyarimohan Mohapatra on Saturday slammed Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik for his letter of recommendation to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for allocation of the Talabira II coal block to Hindalco.
“The role of the Chief Minister is dubious. What prompted the Chief Minister to write the letter in May 2005 to the Prime Minister recommending allocation of the Talabira II coal block to Hindalco whose application was turned down by the 25th Screening Committee (in which the State Mines Secretary is a member) forcing us to suspect his dubious roleIJ” Mohapatra asked while talking to reporters here.
He said the Chief Minister with help of the Congress has stopped CBI inquiry into the Sainik Mining case as well.
On the other hand, BJD MP and Supreme Court lawyer Pinaki Mishra sought to clarify that the Chief Minister has not committed any mistake by writing a letter to the Prime Minister to allocate coal blocks in the “State’s interests”.