Bhubaneswar/Paradip, Nov. 28: The state BJP has been buying land in various parts of Odisha for the past few months to set up party offices.
BJP sources said it had already bought land in 18 districts and negotiations were on for a few more places. The state has 30 districts and the party has 36 organisational districts.
BJP state president Basant Panda told The Telegraph: "We have plans to purchase land and construct buildings in all the organisational district headquarters of the state. It has nothing to do with demonetisation, and the decision to buy land was taken one year ago."
BJP vice-president Samir Mohanty, a member of the party's land purchasing committee, said: "We want to build our party offices at district levels. There is nothing wrong in this."
In August, the BJP had bought nearly two acres of prime land in Kendrapara district. The sale deed was executed in utmost secrecy with even local leaders of the party kept in the dark. They came to know about it only after the land deed was registered. The plots were bought in the name of Surendranath Lath, the BJP's election in-charge during the 2014 Lok Sabha and Assembly polls.
Lath bought two prime land plots measuring 490 decimals (0.49 acre) and 380 decimals (0.38 acre) near the National Highway No. 5 (A) in proximity to the road transport office in Kendrapara. The plots, located near Gop traffic junction on the highway (bearing plot Nos. 1127, 1128 and khata Nos. 505/210 and 505/228), belonged to Bhabesh Kumar Chand, a local businessman. The registration deed (10931602370) was executed on August 30 at the local district sub-registration office.
The sale deed amounted Rs 45 lakh with the government receiving stamp duty worth Rs 3.60 lakh. Those in the real estate business, however, are of the view that the market price of the plots purchased by the BJP would be much more.
Similarly, Lath had bought land plot (khata No. 742, plot No. 457/4409) at Kheresa village in Jagatsinghpur urban area in September on behalf of the BJP. The land, belonging to Radhashyam and Hemant Kumar Swain, measured 230 decimals (0.23 acre) against a payment of Rs 8.25 lakh and Rs 66,000 stamp paper duty, according to the Jagatsinhpur district sub-registrar office records. The prevailing market price of the land - at the time when it was purchased - was much higher, said a Paradip-based real estate agent.
"The land deals need to be probed," said former minister and Mahakalpada MLA Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak.
Kendrapara's Congress leader Ganeswar Behera said: "The BJP leaders have confided that there is something wrong in the land deals."
BJD leader Bishnu Charan Das alleged: "The BJP purchased the land in Jagatsinghpur on September 19. The party had prior knowledge of the demonetisation move," he said.
BJP state committee member Pratap Mishra said: "Due process was followed by the party in the purchase of land in Jagatsinghpur." Kendrapara BJP president Sukant Dwivedy, too, mirrored the same feelings.
In Ganjam, party unit president Kanhu Charan Pati said private land measuring 10,000sqft had been purchased to set up the party office in the district in the past one month. The plot registered in the name of the BJP is situated in Berhampur under Brahmapalli mouza near the entrance to the Silk City close to the national highway. The land value is about Rs 20 lakh, including the registration charges.
In Gajapati district, party unit president Siddheswar Mishra said the party was still searching for suitable land at Paralakhemundi. "We have identified a plot at Jajapur near the Forest Gate on the outskirts of Paralakhemundi town," he said.
Jajpur district unit president Ashutosh Parida said the party was looking for nearly one acre near Panikoili to set up the party's zonal headquarters.
Land hunt for the party is also going on in Balasore district. President of party's Balasore unit Madan Mohan Dutta said: "We need a plot of around 60 decimals to set up a zonal office. It would also function as the regional office of party for districts consisting of Bhadrak, Mayurbhanj and Keonjhar."
In Sambalpur, a permanent office of BJP will be built at Larpang on the Remed-Hirakud road of the town. Sambalpur district BJP president Ramchandra Meher said the party was "in the process of purchasing the land".
In Jharsuguda, the party is said to have bought a plot near Biju Patnaik Chhak at Badmal during auction by a bank. The property has already been transferred in the name of BJP.
