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Hot seat - SANTOSH SINGH SALUJA,
Congress MLA
lYou were suspended from the Assembly for a week for accusing Speaker Pradip Kumar Amat of functioning in a partisan way. Do you regret what you said?
Not at all! Come what may, I will stick to my stand. The Speaker should be above party politics. But, it is surprising to see him behave like any other BJD member. He denied me permission to raise crucial issues and instead, allowed the ruling party members to speak.
lWhy do you think he would do that?
It’s a clever game plan. The ministers have been giving contradictory statements about the number of people living below poverty line, subsidised rice supply and other issues. Every time I stood up, the Speaker did not allow me to speak. I got frustrated and called him a “buchka buha” which means gullible, as per our regional terminology. But, it was mistaken for “bukcha buha”, meaning someone who carries others’ baggage.
lDon’t you think it was still objectionable?
Had he felt offended, he should have named me immediately and taken me to task. But, he did not do that. I was allowed to take part in an adjournment motion. Later, government deputy chief whip Sanjay Das Burma brought a motion for my suspension, supported by government chief whip Pravat Tripaty. The motion was then passed by voice vote. It was unfair.
lThen why did leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh apologise on your behalf in the floor of the House?
I learnt about it much after he had said sorry. When I made that remark, he was not present. So, when I asked him why he apologised, he said everyone in the House was discussing my conduct and so he had stood up and said sorry.
lIs it true that you don’t get along well with Bhupinder Singh, though you both hail from western Odisha?
Not true! I consider him as my elder brother and had proposed his name as the leader of Opposition. However, we differ on many issues and people misunderstand it for a bad equation.
lYou are known to be short-tempered, accused of misbehaving with and beating up quite a few people, including a woman block development officer and a journalist. Don’t you regret it?
I lose my temper when I find officers exploiting the poor, and despite protests, no action is taken against them. In the case of the woman block development officer, I had organised a protest meet near her office to expose her corrupt practices. She lodged an FIR based on the speeches, labelling it as verbal assault! And the journalist I beat up used to harass me and local people for money. His father was my friend. Though people damaged his camera, they later paid money for it.
lDon’t MLAs harass the public?
Yes! Like there is a black sheep in every flock, there are bad and corrupt people in every profession. They must be exposed and punished.
lWhat would you say about the allegation that your family is involved in sending bonded labour from your constituency, Kantabanji, to other parts of the country?
These are false allegations to defame my family. None of us is involved in such an illegal act.
lWhat about allegations of passing on vital information from the Opposition camp to the ruling party as you enjoy a good rapport with the chief minister?
Why must I do so? I am aware of my role and responsibilities as an Opposition member. Naveen (Patnaik) babu is a good chief minister and one should acknowledge it. When he does something good, I appreciate it. When he doesn’t, I question it.
lIf Naveen is a good CM, don’t you think the Congress’s chances of coming back to power are as good as nil?
That’s a separate issue. The Congress will come back to power in Odisha only because of the image of Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. People have started realising that most welfare schemes, including rice at Rs2 per kg, are the Centre-sponsored. Besides, the direct cash transfer scheme is also expected to cover 16 districts of Odisha. This will change people’s perceptions and they will support Congress.
lDoes the Congress leadership in Odisha have potential to overthrow the Naveen Patnaik government?
No, the state Congress lacks charisma and organisational capabilities. Everything depends on Rahulji and Soniaji. A new leader will shortly be named to take over the mantle from the present leadership.
lBut will he be good enough to challenge Naveen?
The Congress is a big party with a rich history. There are many good leaders. The Congress high command will take the right decision at the right time.
lYou are the lone Sikh member in the Assembly. Do feel being ignored by your party and colleagues?
No. I am a part and parcel of this state. My forefathers migrated here over 100 years ago from Punjab. Now I don’t have a single relative in Punjab nor do I know which part we actually hail from. So, I identify myself as an Odia, as a son of this soil. My elder son is married to an Odia.
Balangir’s stormy petrel
lKnown as the Congress’s stormy petrel,
Santosh Singh Saluja is an MLA representing Kantabanji constituency in Balangir district
lThe legislator was suspended from the
Assembly for a week on December 13 for
passing objectionable remarks against
Speaker Pradip Kumar Amat, alleging that
he was giving priority to members of the
BJD and ignoring the Opposition
lProtesting against his suspension, he sat on
a dharna on the Assembly premises. Some of his Congress colleagues also supported him
lIn December 2010, Saluja had snatched
the pen-stand on the Speaker’s table and
threw it at him
lHe was apparently angry as the Speaker
refused to expunge a remark by a minister
over the alleged involvement of Opposition MLA in tender-fixing for irrigation projects
lThough the pen-stand missed its
target, Saluja was accused of attacking
the Speaker
lThe Congress MLA has been embroiled in controversies such as allegedly misbehaving with a woman block development officer and beating up a journalist
lSaluja has studied up to Class IX and has completed his intermediary studies privately. He has also done a certificate course in disaster management under the Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou)
lHe started off as a councillor of
Kantabanji notified area council and
then entered politics in the mid 90s
what would you have been Had you not been a politician?
We have a lot of agricultural land in
western Odisha, so I would have taken up farming, just as my forefathers did. But, I came into politics because of
encouragement from the local people. They felt that I would be able to alleviate their problems. Right now, I don’t have any ambition. I am content as an MLA.
I am able to run my family smoothly
by Lord Jagannath’s grace. An MLA earns around Rs 1.5 lakh. One can spend on luxuries and still save up to
Rs 50,000. All that goes into my bank
account. The farmlands also ensure a steady income
