Prime minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to visit the state on June 2. How is the state unit preparing for the visit?

Our workers are jubilant for the Prime Minister’s visit to Balasore. Preparations are in full swing. We expect more than four lakh people at the meeting. Here, the Prime Minister is coming to the state to show his two-year report card to the people. Have you ever heard of anything like this in the past?

Why did the party choose Balasore as the venue of the visit? Anything special about it? 

He has already visited and addressed people at Paradip in east Odisha, Bargarh and Rourkela in west Odisha. This time, we have requested him to come to north Odisha (Balasore being the nerve centre) and interact with the people there. We are honoured that he has kept our request.  

The BJP has a strong foothold in west Odisha, but has failed to make inroads into the other parts of the state.

We are trying to make our presence felt by winning the confidence of the people. We want to be with the people all the time. You have already seen this.

The party has been making claims about its growth in the state in the past 15 years, but the claim is not borne out by election results. 

Fifteen years is not a long time in politics. Failures and successes are part of life. We have ambitions and there is nothing wrong with that. Being the party president, I have faith in the dreams of Modiji to make India strong — Sabka saath, sabka vikas. We hope the BJP will come to power in 
the state. 

The BJP is now trying to invoke the name of Biju Patnaik. The Union government has announced that it would observe Biju Patnaik’s birth centenary.

This is incorrect. The Modi government believes in honouring the sons of the soil. We have decided to observe the birth centenaries of around nine illustrious sons of the soils. Guru Gobind Singh and B.R. Ambdekar are not from the BJP, but we are observing their birth centenaries. We don’t want politics on this.

But you must be aware that Biju babu was very critical of the RSS. 

I don’t want to comment on someone’s personal views. The government under the leadership of Modiji believes in the development of every one. I don’t know why some people are taking it otherwise. 

We have noticed that the people from non-RSS backgrounds are sidelined in the party. Have they no scope to rise in the party cadres?

Without foundation, a building cannot be properly constructed. We believe in ‘One team, one dream’. Perhaps, you are hinting that I have been made the party unit president only because of my RSS background. Do you think that I am not worthy of my position? People without RSS backgrounds, such as Suresh Prabhu and Yashwant Sinha, have also been successful in the BJP.

But here in the state, we have noticed how Bijoy Mohapatra, K.V. Singh Deo and a few other leaders have been sidelined by the party leadership… 

Even in a house, there are differences of opinion among brothers. There is difference of opinion between a husband and a wife. There is difference of opinion between a son and a father. 

But when it comes to a crunch situation, they all unite. Similarly in our party, there is difference of opinion but that does not mean we are not united. I regularly seek advice and suggestions from all senior leaders including Bijoy Mohapatra, K.V. Singh Deo, Dharmendra Pradhan, Jual Oram and others.

You have been described as the man of the Union minister for state for petroleum and natural gas Dharmendra Pradhan. People say that those who have found berths in the party’s state executive have been picked according to the wishes of Pradhan.

When I joined the BJP, what was the age of Dharmendra Pradhan? Do you want to say that I was elected as district president and later on as an MLA with the blessings of Dharmendra Pradhan? My only identity is that I am a disciplined worker of the party. Whenever the party has sought my services, I have offered it. 

Senior BJP leader Ashok Sahu was suspended from the party because he was critical of the outgoing president K.V. Singh Deo’s style of functioning. But with the change of guard, the suspension was withdrawn, indicating differences in the party. 

Suspension is not a punishment. The party had suspended him because of some unfortunate incidents that had happened at that time. However, the situation has changed. The party analysed his work and found that his commitment to the party was unflinching. 

The party is also divided on the issue of the CBI’s investigation into the money deposit scam. You have been quoted saying that the central agency was moving in the right direction, but there are other leaders in the party who have stated otherwise. 

Each person has his own point of view. Those who have commented on the CBI’s (poor) performance are senior leaders of our party. I cannot comment on them.  But to me, the CBI is the best investigating agency of the country and they are doing their duty. It may take some time but culprits will be punished.

The party is talking of sabka vikas, but it’s unfortunate that despite Odisha’s repeated demand to release more rice for its people, it is not allocating it. It seems the Centre is playing with the people of the state… 

A good thing has emerged from this. The people are now getting to know who is giving them the subsidised rice. The false claim of the BJD government that it is giving them the cheap rice has been exposed. 

I am personally happy that they had met governor S.C. Jamir on this issue and alleged that the Centre was not releasing the rice. They are trying to do politics on this issue. But it has backfired. The people have realised that the Centre is giving them rice and not the state government. 
I agree Odisha needs more rice. At the same time, I can say the food habit of the people has gradually changed and people have started taking wheat-based food. 

Two senior leaders of the BJD have accused the central government of dumping wheat in Odisha at the insistence of the wheat lobby of north India.

I don’t know about it and without having knowledge about something, one should not comment.  As Union food and consumer welfare minister Ram Vilas Paswan has already announced that more rice would be allocated to the state on a 85:15 ratio, Naveen Patnaik government need not worry on this front.

The state has been demanding special category state status for the past several years. What is the BJP state unit’s stand on this issue?  

We are not like BJD, which is busy shedding crocodile tears on the special category issue. What have they done in the past 15 years? There is no development in the state. Of the total state budget of Rs 94,000 crore, the Centre is giving around 
Rs 44,000 crore. At present, the state is spending Rs 45,000 crore to pay salary and pension and it is left with little money to carry out development works from its own pocket.

Please be straight and say whether you are supporting the demand for a special category state or not.

I will not say what you want to hear. Don’t try to put words in my mouth. Being a mediaperson you should not argue for a non-performing government whose only job is to raise slogans against the Centre. 

We want to see Odisha’s development and we  want it to become the number one state. The Prime Minister has already said that he wants the development of the country as well as the states. He is also focusing on the development of eastern India.

We are not praising the Naveen Patnaik government. Your BJP ministers (central) are heaping praises on his government and the state is getting awards for its performances. 

I will not make any comment on this issue. The Centre and state’s relations are bound by the principle of the spirit of federalism. I am doing my duty as the state’s party president. My job is to encourage lakhs of party workers and instil a sense of confidence in them. My job is to strengthen party in all the 36 organisational districts and also ensure that the BJP reaches the panchayat level. Now, our team is ready to go to the panchayat polls.

The chief minister is frequently meeting the Prime Minister, which was not seen during the UPA regime. He seems to have established a cordial relationship with the central  leadership. Even Modi and BJP president Amit Shah had shied away from criticising Naveen. It naturally creates a doubt about the BJP’s approach towards the Naveen Patnaik government.

In a federal structure, it is desirable that the Centre and the state have cordial relations. Accordingly, the Prime Minister is meeting the chief minister regularly. The Prime Minister’s aim is to ensure that the whole country marches on the path of development and he is focusing on the development of eastern India. He even had called the chief minister to discuss the drought situation.

No one is untouchable in politics. If situation demands, there is a public perception that the BJP may enter into an alliance with the BJD...

There is no chance of forging any tie with the BJD at any point of time. How can we forget how the BJD had ditched us in 2009? At this point of time, we want to play a positive role in the state, but BJD should give up its ego. 

The BJP always argues in favour of one man and one post. You are holding two positions — party unit president and the BJP’s legislature party leader. 

I have already intimated the leadership about my decision to step down from the BJP legislature party leader. New names have already been sent to parliamentary board. They will take a call and announce the name. I have no role in this.