Bhubaneswar : It could be a courtesy visit, but Baijayant Panda, who himself was subjected to attack and humiliation within the party not long ago, became the first politician to meet Dr. Damodar Rout, who was unceremoniously expelled from BJD last night.
After meeting Dr. Rout, Baijayant tweeted, “What a Kafkaesque world this is: the same party in which we used to take pride for acting swiftly against corruption, now doing just the opposite! Now whistleblowers who expose big corruption (that too w/facts/figures/documents) are swiftly victimised, & no action on the crooks!!”
Political pundits in Odisha see this meeting between Baijayant Panda and Damodar Rout as the beginning of a new chapter in Odisha politics. While Dama Rout remained a close disciple of Biju Patnaik and was instrumental in building Janata Dal as well as strenghtening BJD at the later stage, Baijayant Panda too remained a part and parcel of the party since its inception.
If both disgruntled leaders join hands and others step in too to save the Biju legacy, it might spell trouble for the Biju Janata Dal in the election year. Meanwhile, BJD President and CM Naveen Patnaik has confirmed in Delhi that Damodar Rout was expelled from the party for anti-party activities.
Prasanta Patnaik