Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Monday mounted a scathing attack on the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD Government, saying, “Odisha is not being ruled by its people but by the mining mafia.”
He also accused the Patnaik administration of siphoning “thousands of crores of rupees” provided by the UPA Government at the Centre under the various Centrally-sponsored schemes by adopting corrupt means.
He said the MGNREGA and even the one-rupee-a-kilo rice programme of the State Government are parts of the Centrally-funded schemes. Gandhi was addressing an election rally at lunguri at Semiliguda in the tribals-dominated Koraput district, his first in the State after the declaration of the general elections for 2014.
The Congress star campaigner’s rally coincided with Naveen Patnaik’s election meeting in Koraput district.Gandhi said the tribals are being looted of the natural wealth they are entitled to by the BJD Government and they are deprived of any benefits in the process.
Rahul Gandhi also sought to strike an emotional chord with the tribals, saying that his family has always been close to them. He likes to visit Odisha, especially its tribal zones, he said, and recalled that his late father Rajiv Gandhi had also visited this particular area.
He also recalled his support to the tribals of the Niyamgiri Hills in Kalahandi and Rayagada districts in their fight against mining of bauxite from the hills. Gandhi emphasised on the need to empower women, saying, “Without empowerment of women the country cannot make any progress.”
“We gave a 50 per cent reservation to women in panchayats. Our next efforts will be to pass a Women’s Reservation Bill so that 33 per cent reservation is available in the Assemblies and Parliament,” he said.