Bhubaneswar, June 4: Still smarting from his humiliating exit from the cabinet, former agriculture minister Damodar Rout today fired yet another salvo at his bete noire and Rajya Sabha member Pyari Mohan Mohapatra.

“A second power centre is like a cancer in a democratic set-up. It is all the more dangerous in a regional outfit. It breeds corruption and leads to a culture of flattery and anti-people policies,” Rout told The Telegraph reiterating his earlier charge that Mohapatra had emerged as parallel centre of power within the ruling Biju Janata Dal.

Soon after being dropped from the cabinet last month, Rout had lashed out at the Rajya Sabha member describing him as the real power centre in the BJD while chief minister Naveen Patnaik was merely executing his decisions. He has had a longstanding battle with Mohapatra, a bureaucrat-turned-politician.

His latest outburst assumes special significance in view of the turbulence within the BJD where signs of dissidence have become clear following the suspension of former minister and Bari MLA Debashish Nayak from the party. Even more importantly, political grapevine has been abuzz with rumours that Rout has received feelers from the chief minister who wanted a patch up.

Rout, however, was surprisingly pugnacious today. “The chief minister and party supremo, Naveen, is yet to clarify whether he is the only power centre in the BJD and taking all the decisions himself,” said Rout, who does not seem to be willing to pull his punches.

“Similarly, the man (Mohapatra) who is being projected as the second power centre and is said to be taking all the important decisions, has not denied the allegations,” he added. Asserting that he was a bonafide BJD member and also a vice-president of the party, Rout, who represents Paradip in the Assembly, said he had never broken party discipline. But he clarified that he was also not prepared to accept the existence of a second power centre.

On why did he open his mouth after keeping mum for so many days, Rout said: “A false propaganda is going in a section of the media that I have been appeased with the offer of a ministerial berth which is why I was keeping quiet since being dropped from the cabinet. This pains a seasoned politician like me who values his self dignity and respect more than the loaves and fishes of office.”

The former minister, who has been elected to the state Assembly six times and served as a minister five times, alleged that there has been an “invisible attempt” to spread canards against him during the last few days. “I am sure the source of such rumour is the so-called second power centre,” he said.

Rout also scotched rumours about his having received feelers from the chief minister’s office and a senior officer from there having met him recently. “This is absolutely false and baseless,” he said.

As rumours flew thick and fast that Naveen had decided to take a soft approach towards him following a “secret understanding” in the wake of Debashish Nayak’s suspension for ‘ant-party activities, Rout said: “It is up to the party president to take disciplinary action against any leader. But I am convinced that neither my statement nor that of Nayak had anything in it to attract disciplinary action. Rather, our noble intention through these statements was to impress upon our leader the need for corrective measures.”