The winter session of the Assembly was adjourned sine die on December 16, much ahead of schedule, after the speaker accepted a motion by government chief whip that the House could not run due to non-cooperation of Opposition Congress. But many believe that it happened as the ruling party members were not prepared to confront the public on certain issues. What would you say to this?

From the very beginning of the session, the Opposition was determined not to allow the treasury bench to run the House. They also used force, broke the microphone set of the speaker and used all sorts of tactics to create commotion. So, it was not wrong to adjourn the House for an indefinite period.

Was it wrong on the part of the Opposition to demand the resignation of revenue and disaster management minister Surjya Narayan Patro, who presented wrong facts on the issue of Central assistance for the cyclone and flood damages in the state?

The minister later rectified his statement. But the Opposition is in the habit of creating disturbance in the House. Be it the issue of establishing a permanent high court bench in west Odisha or any communication with my department (panchayati raj), the Congress releases letters to the media before the state government has received it. When Jairam Ramesh (Union minister for rural development) writes to the chief minister, it is there in newspapers at least two days before Naveen (Patnaik) babu gets it.

That is because the Congress leaders believe that Odisha government conceals things and so, they send the letters to the media in public interest…

There is nothing wrong in releasing letters to the media. But can’t they send it to the chief minister or the departments concerned simultaneously?

But won’t you admit there were lapses on the part of the officials in intimating the government on the issue of fund release because of which Patro gave a wrong statement in the House?

There might have been some official lapses. We don’t check treasury transactions everyday as there is no risk of overdraft.

Can this be a reason when all official work, including money transactions, happens online?

Several transactions take place everyday and certain procedures have to be followed before the money is released through e-transfer. But I agree that the officials could have brought it our notice. After all, Rs 500 crore is not a small amount. They should have cross-checked from where the money came. But at that time the 14th Finance Commission had come to the state and the officials might not have found time to check the e-payment system. Fact remains that even the chief minister was not aware that the money had already been released.

But in spite of everything, the Congress seems to have called the ruling BJD’s bluff on the issue of central assistance to the state, putting them in an awkward situation. Why hasn’t the government taken action against officials?

The government is investigating the lapses. But the BJD’s stand on Central neglect is justified. We had demanded assistance of around Rs 5,832 crore, but the Centre released only Rs 1,000 crore in advance, almost a month after the Prime Minister had made the announcement. This kind of treatment is never meted out to any other state. Odisha gives the highest revenue to the railways, but our demands have been neglected over the years. The Congress, after a long reign, left Odisha in such a miserable condition that even after so much developmental work, we continue to be the poorest. The Centre announces how much funds they have given to Odisha but they are not doing a favour to us. It is given to the states according to indicators worked out by the Planning Commission.

Why were the Congress leaders not invited to the business advisory committee meeting on fixing a schedule for various bills and motions?

That is not true. Whenever the committee meeting takes place, they come late. This time, they said they would be late by 20 minutes though they were very much present in the Assembly premises addressing press meets. We sent informed them thrice, but they did not come.

You are not a part of the Bhubaneswar Assembly constituency, but figured in the committee that finalised candidates for municipal polls in the capital. How did you work that out?

There are other members in the committee too. We collected information and suggestions from various sources and party candidates were picked unanimously.

Social activist and techie Linkan Subudhi, who was attacked in Noida for opposing child marriage, has also been given a ticket for the urban polls. Did the party approach her?

No, she approached us. We are happy to give a ticket to a young Odia girl, who has nerves of steel and resolve to fight societal evils and hooligans.

In your party, is it easier to get a party ticket if one’s parent is a minister or MLA?

There is nothing of the sort. It depends on your individual capabilities, commitment to serve people and also, winnability factor.

It is alleged that there is always a difference of opinion between the mayor and MLAs of Bhubaneswar. How can a balance be worked out?

I don’t agree with you. The mayor always works in tandem with the MLAs.