Many Central Congress Ministers during their visits to Odisha have been giving good performance chits to the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD Government from time-to-time to the great discomfiture of the State Congress, which, as the State’s main Opposition party, has been fighting against the BJD on several issues.
And the latest is Union Minister Shashi Tharoor, who, after meeting Naveen Patnaik here on Thursday, went to the extent of making it clear that the Congress’ door is always open for Patnaik and his BJD. Tharoor told a television channel here that Patnaik is secular as well as a democrat. While the general elections are nearing fast and the State Congress leaders have been campaigning against the Patnaik Government, Tharoor’s statement has proved them wrong in a single stroke, creating huge embarrassment and sending shockwaves among the State party hierarchy.
An angry PCC president Jayadev Jena on Saturday said Tharoor had no right to poke his nose in the affairs of the State politics. Sources said Jena is likely to draw Tharoor’s “interference” to the party high command’s notice. Interestingly, Tharoor’s remark came on the day when Patnaik announced that both Rahul Gandhi of the Congress and Narendra Modi of the BJP, are unacceptable to him as future Prime Minister. And Patnaik has been on a daily basis tearing into Congress-led UPA Government at the Centre for its “stepmotherly attitude” towards Odisha’s development.
What was more shocking to State Congress leaders was when Tharoor did not care to meet any of them, particularly his only Ministerial colleague from Odisha, Srikant Jena, who was present in Bhubaneswar during his visit. It is Jena and another Union Minister Jairam Ramesh who has been visiting Odisha on a regular basis, who have been targeting the Patnaik Government on the issue of poor use of Central funds.
“let me say that the (Congress’) door (for the BJD) is always open, but it’s not my place to work on this area. I have a very different role in the party,” Tharoor said. He further said, “I know that many in our party have high-level of respect for Naveen Patnaik and for his leadership of the State of Odisha.”
There are no fundamental issues between the Congress and the BJD as far ideology is concerned “by comparison with the fundamental issues that divide us from Modi and BJP,” he stated. While admitting that the Congress is in Opposition in the State, Tharoor said, “That does not compare to how we feel about the principles or lack of principles that animate Modi’s BJP.”
“So as far as we are concerned, there is an ocean of difference (between the BJD and the BJP) and the door is very much open (for the BJD) from our side. When the time comes, we all have to see what comes out of the elections,” Tharoor said.