Puri BJD MP Pinaki Misra, who has been re-nominated for this election, on Wednesday challenged his BJP rival Dr Sambit Patra for a one-to-one debate over his (Misra’s) performance in Parliament in last five years.
Misra reacted to Patra’s campaigning that the former’s performance record as an MP is poor. He said Patra should debate with him to know how many questions he has asked in Lok Sabha as a representative from Puri.
Misra said Patra is ignorant about Parliamentary affairs and is only engaged in the hot discussions in television.
Misra told this to reporters after filing his nomination papers before the district Collector.
Sitting MLA and Minister Moheswar Mohanty and Lalitendu Bidhyadhar Mohapatra also filed their nomination papers before the Sub-Collector as BJD and BJP candidates for their respective Puri Sadar and Brahamgiri Assembly seats.
Pinaki Misra said that from the doubling of the Puri-Khurda railway line to Amruta and Hriday scheme, he was the one who sanctioned Rs 50 crore of Central funds for the Nabakalebar Yatra in 2015.
Among thousands of questions in the Parliament on issues of Odisha, he has raised nearly 80 to 100 questions on those of Puri and the Jaganath Temple.