Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik said the BJP will maintain equidistance from both BJP and Congress. (File)Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Wednesday ruled out any possibility of his party Biju Janta Dal (BJD) joining the grand alliance or Mahagathbandhan for the Lok Sabha election in 2019, PTI reported. Patnaik said as part of his party’s policy, the BJD will continue to maintain equal distance from both the BJP and the Congress.
“We will continue with our policy of equidistance from the BJP and the Congress,” PTI quoted him as saying.
Participating in the BJD’s sit-in seeking an increase in the minimum support price for paddy, Patnaik had Tuesday said that he needs time to think about his party being a part of the grand alliance. He had alleged that the BJP ignored the demand despite promising it in its manifesto for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
The BJD, which was in alliance with the BJP from 2000-2009, have maintained distance with the saffron party and the Congress ever since. Patnaik’s statement may come as a setback for the Congress which is hoping to unite the regional parties in a bid to take on the ruling party in the Lok Sabha elections this year.
The BJP, meanwhile, accused the BJD of having some “understanding” with the Congress. “There is no doubt that the BJD is having hidden understanding with the Congress. Patnaik’s statement is nothing but a ploy to mislead the people,” PTI quoted Odisha BJP president Basant Panda as saying.
On the other hand, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Niranjan Patnaik lashed out at the Patnaik, accusing him of being with the BJP all along, but claiming to have an “equal distance policy” only in self-defence.
He also said that Patnaik’s meeting with Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao last month was an attempt to weaken anti-BJP forces.
At the meeting, KCR and Patnaik had emphasised on the unification of regional parties to provide an alternative to the Congress and the BJP ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
Since 2009, the BJD has been fighting Lok Sabha as well as Assembly elections alone. Odisha has 21 Lok Sabha and 147 assembly seats and the two polls will take place simultaneously in the state.
(With PTI inputs)
