Buzz on BJD churn as Navin Patnaik makes MP quit
NEW DELHI: Suspense has gripped the usually calm Biju Janata Dal camp in Parliament after party supremo Navin Patnaik made senior leader Bishnu Charan Das resign his Rajya Sabha seat, months after he was nominated for a full term.
Coming after BJD’s major electoral setback in local body polls last month, senior party MPs see this as beginning of churning in the party. Two top retired top bureaucrats who have long advised the elusive Patnaik, the CM’s sister, Gita Mehta, and Mindtree founder Subroto Bagchi are being mentioned as probables for filling the Rajya Sabha berth.
Patnaik’s sudden recall of Das, a founder leader of BJD, took partymen by surprise. The ostensible reason is that Das has been appointment deputy chairman of the state planning commission, an office of profit which an MP cannot hold. But not many partymen are convinced as Das is a grassroots politician who led the BJD campaign with a degree of success in the local polls in his home district.
Patnaik has shown a streak for making unexpected surgical strikes like when he sacked leaders Dilp Ray and Bijoy Mahapatra, snapped ties with BJP overnight and suddenly removed political aide Pyarimohan Mahapatra.
This has left his partymen wondering whether Bishnu Das has been cut down to size. With names of former chief secretary Bijay Patnaik and exprincipal secretary Santosh Satpathy mentioned as potential candidates for filling the RS seat, partymen have been left them guessing whether the former-bureaucrats would emerge Patnaik’s new advisors.
Since bachelor Patnaik is 70, there is also speculation on whether he would nurture a political heir from the larger family, with names of his nephew and sister mentioned. In this context, the buzz about Patanik’s sister Gita Mehta filling the Rajya Sabha seat is significant, even though party circles are in no position to confirm it. “Author Gita Mehta’s name is doing the rounds even though the tradition of the larger Patnaik family has been to have just one family member in politics at a time,” said senior BJD leader.
Bagchi has been known to be close to the CM and is now an advisor on skill-development in Odisha with cabinet rank. Since the picture is not clear, the political antennae in BJD is up, trying to catch the signal from Navin Patnaik, who remains an enigma to most colleagues.
Coming after BJD’s major electoral setback in local body polls last month, senior party MPs see this as beginning of churning in the party. Two top retired top bureaucrats who have long advised the elusive Patnaik, the CM’s sister, Gita Mehta, and Mindtree founder Subroto Bagchi are being mentioned as probables for filling the Rajya Sabha berth.
Patnaik’s sudden recall of Das, a founder leader of BJD, took partymen by surprise. The ostensible reason is that Das has been appointment deputy chairman of the state planning commission, an office of profit which an MP cannot hold. But not many partymen are convinced as Das is a grassroots politician who led the BJD campaign with a degree of success in the local polls in his home district.
Patnaik has shown a streak for making unexpected surgical strikes like when he sacked leaders Dilp Ray and Bijoy Mahapatra, snapped ties with BJP overnight and suddenly removed political aide Pyarimohan Mahapatra.
This has left his partymen wondering whether Bishnu Das has been cut down to size. With names of former chief secretary Bijay Patnaik and exprincipal secretary Santosh Satpathy mentioned as potential candidates for filling the RS seat, partymen have been left them guessing whether the former-bureaucrats would emerge Patnaik’s new advisors.
Since bachelor Patnaik is 70, there is also speculation on whether he would nurture a political heir from the larger family, with names of his nephew and sister mentioned. In this context, the buzz about Patanik’s sister Gita Mehta filling the Rajya Sabha seat is significant, even though party circles are in no position to confirm it. “Author Gita Mehta’s name is doing the rounds even though the tradition of the larger Patnaik family has been to have just one family member in politics at a time,” said senior BJD leader.
Bagchi has been known to be close to the CM and is now an advisor on skill-development in Odisha with cabinet rank. Since the picture is not clear, the political antennae in BJD is up, trying to catch the signal from Navin Patnaik, who remains an enigma to most colleagues.
