What happened in the rural polls? Why did the BJD under perform?

If you look at the 2012 rural polls, we had won 651 out of 852 seats. Now, expecting to do better means an absolute majority. Being in power for four consecutive terms, I will say this year’s result (winning 476 out of 848 seats) is no mean achievement. Being the party in power, I feel that our performance is satisfactory. 

On the other hand, the BJP, which only had 36 seats in 2012, has won 293. If you analyse the results, you would find that they had concentrated on four districts — Mayurbhanj, Balangir, Kalahandi and Baragrh — where they got the bulk of their seats. This has increased their tally.

There was clearly different voting patterns in the zila parishad and panchayat samiti elections. In Mayurbhanj district, the BJP won 48 seats out of 56 zila parishad seats. But out of 26 panchayat samitis, the BJD has formed samitis in 20 blocks. Saying that the BJP has got a landslide victory and claiming that the people have voted for a change of government is a travesty of truth. 

The BJP leadership is euphoric. If somebody has to do the hard work, it’s the Congress. It was the main Opposition party, but has slid down to third position.

How do you view the fact that the majority of panchayat samitis have been captured by the BJD, followed by the Congress? 

If you look at the functioning of the panchayat system, it is the sarpanchs, who execute the government’s schemes and plans. Panchayat samiti is the nodal agency, which implements various central and state government schemes. So, we have nothing to worry about. Zila parishad is only a watch body. No doubt we have got less seats compared to 2012, but out of 314 blocks, we have captured 280. This accounts for over 70 per cent. The Congress is in second with 44 and the BJP is in third with 29. The media view and what is being propagated by the BJP are absolutely false. The reality is something different. The people, who are actually watching the scenario, know where the truth lies... 

Do you think the Congress has lost the ground as the principal Opposition party and the BJP has emerged as a powerful force in the state?

Yes, the emergence of the BJP as the main Opposition to and the Congress’s slide are facts. But, the BJD’s popularity is intact. It is committed to work and it will continue to work.

Is the BJD scared of the BJP’s proposed national executive meet in Bhubanerswar, which will be attended by the Prime Minister, home minister and 13 chief ministers? 

Why should we? The BJP is like any other political party and they are holding their meeting here. For the past week, reports are being written on the issue suggesting that something will happen to our government. People are trying to create a fear psychosis in the media — which is uncalled for. Nothing will happen to the government.

It’s your MP Tathagata Satpathy who had raised the issue...

The media are misquoting and placing it in the wrong context. He has only expressed apprehension, but it is being construed as a statement. Don’t forget that he is also the a newspaper editor. We are not sure if it has come out from an MP’s mind or an editor.

The sudden rise in infighting is quite visible in the BJD. MPs, including Tathagata Satpathy and Baijayant Panda, are airing views on internal party affairs in public… 

I can assure you that there is no infighting in the party. Some leaders have aired their personal views regarding the party’s organisational matters openly in the media, which should not have been done. It should have been discussed in the party forum. The moment you discuss these issues in public, everybody is entitled to draw their own conclusion.

You seem to be avoiding the issue. We have noticed differences between senior minister Damodar Rout and deputy chairman of state planning board Bishnu Charan Das, Rajya Sabha member N. Bhaskar Rao and senior leader Jayram Pangi. All these things are tarnishing the image of the party.

Tell me the name of a party, be it the BJP or the Congress, which does not have internal bickering. Do the Congress, BJP or the Samajwadi Party not have differences? How can the BJD be an exception? It’s nothing big...

Baijayant Panda has raised the issue of growing bureaucratic interference in party matters.

This is a democratic set up. In politics, everybody has their own point of view. Why should there be bureaucratic interference? To claim that the party is run by bureaucrats is wrong.

Since yours is a regional party, questions are being raised as to who will take over from Naveen when the time comes.

The party will decide it at the appropriate time. Why are you discussing the issue now? There are many senior leaders in the party.

There is speculation that Naveen’s elder sister Gita Mehta will take over… 

Talking of Gitaji is media speculation… Even when she was not there, the media ran a story on her…

The NDA is projecting the UPA government’s schemes as its own. Don’t you think that this is putting the state government, which earlier used to appropriate credit for the UPA’s scheme, at a disadvantage?

Whatever schemes the NDA government is executing are basically the UPA’s scheme. The rice scheme was launched by the UPA in 2008 and re-launched in 2013. The ambulance scheme was also launched by the UPA. Nothing new has happened so far. 

Even the cashless subsidy scheme was the brainchild of then Planning Commission deputy chairman, Montek Singh Ahulwalia. The Ujjala gas scheme was implemented in various districts of Rajasthan by the UPA. The Modi government is yet to come up with a new scheme.

By moving an amendment bill to set up a tribunal to resolve the Mahanadi water dispute, the BJP has been able to defuse the issue. It is no longer an issue... 

The issue has definitely not been defused, it has only been deferred. Mahanadi is the lifeline of Odisha. 
Any interference with its flow will have serious impact on the livelihood of the common man. We will continue to raise the issue.

Can we say all is well within the party and it is not going to split?

Yes, so far I am concerned, I can say all is well within the party. The party stands united behind the leadership of Naveenji. Our set up is foolproof and tight-knit.