Keeping mum

Chief minister Naveen Patnaik seems to follow the old adage that silence is golden. A man of few words, he clams up every time a major controversy erupts. Despite provocative prodding of the media, Naveen hardly says a word. He stuck firmly to his policy of not opening his mouth on sensitive issues during his Saturday trip to Puri, where he inaugurated a string of Nabakalebar-related projects. While waxing eloquence about the utility of these projects, he dashed the hopes of extracting a few bytes on the Brahma Paribartan (soul transfer) fiasco of the Puri deities to the media. All that Naveen was willing to oblige the media was his trademark toothy grin that tells you politely, but firmly, that he would not open his mouth, come what may. 

Holding sway

Puri MLA and Nabakalebar Infrastructure Committee chairman Maheswar Mohanty is no stranger to controversies. A new one seems to have erupted with allegations flying thick and fast that he influenced government’s choice of Malatipatpur on the outskirts of the temple town for building a state of the art bus terminus. This surely would help promote real estate business at Malatipatpur. His detractors point out that there were many suitable locations in and around Puri for building a modern bus stand but Malatipatpur was deliberately chosen, as apartments in the area would sell at a premium. Though ruling BJD sources rubbished the charge as Opposition propaganda, his detractors may continue sniping at him.

Past his prime

If sources in the BJP are to be believed, the recent entry of former chief minister and tribal veteran Giridhar Gamang into the party has not gone down well with the saffron cadres even in his native Koraput where his base has shrunk over the years. The overwhelming feeling among them is that while the move may help keep Gamang politically afloat for sometime, it would not help the saffron party. The nine-time MP from Koraput is no more the force he once used to be in the region. “That is why the Congress, his parent party, did not lament his departure. We are sure he has joined BJP in the hope of landing a gubernatorial assignment like Draupadi Murmu. But what good will that do to our party?” fumed a Koraput-based BJP leader.

Sticking around

Congress stalwart Hemanand Biswal, a former chief minister and the most respected tribal leader of the party following Gamang’s departure, has been rattled by rumours that he is about to quit the party. Obviously inspired by Gamang’s turncoat act, these rumours have intensified in the last few weeks, forcing Biswal to issue a clarification. Dubbing such talks as mischievous canard, the former MP from Sundargarh told a TV channel recently that he could not think of ever quitting the Congress, which has given him so much in life. Sources close to the leader said even though he was not happy with the Congress leadership, he would not make the mistake of leaving the party at this stage. The departure of Gamang has strengthened Biswal’s claim of being the most important tribal leader. 

Odia card 

For BJD MP Baishnab Parida, getting a Rajya Sabha seat was an unexpected stroke of luck. 
But the political lightweight that he is, even he knows that his luck is not going to last long with chances of a re-nomination remote once his current term at the Upper House comes to an end next year. 
Unsure of his political future, he has begun launching veiled attacks on chief minister Naveen Patnaik on the pretext of promoting Odia language, hoping that the pressure tactics might work. In the recent past, he even announced the launch of a postcard campaign to pressurise the BJD government into making Odia the state’s official language. 

Sources in the BJD, however, said chief minister Naveen Patnaik was not amused by Parida’s antics and the MP may shortly find himself further marginalised within the party.

FOOTNOTE

Shadow of the past

Former BJP minister Jaynarayan Mishra seems to be maintaining a low profile since his arrest in connection with the Hanuman Jayanti fracas in Sambalpur. 

Unlike in the past, Mishra, who lost the last election to BJD rookie Raseswari Panigrahy, is rarely seen at the party headquarters in Bhubaneswar these days. In the last few months, he has also maintained a studied silence over important issues while his rival and the newly appointed BJP national secretary Suresh Pujari has been quite vocal. 
The talk within the party is that Mishra’s morale has been badly dented by his defeat in the elections since Sambalpur had come to be known as his pocket borough. 
“The Hanuman Jayanti controversy did not help his cause. He will take time to recover,” said a BJP sympathiser.