Though his party views the BJP as its biggest adversary in the coastal state, Naveen Patnaik, the chief minister of Odisha and president of the ruling BJD, claimed they get along well.
Patnaik and his party, who previously accused the central government in Delhi of negligence, also acknowledged that Odisha today receives good cooperation from the Centre for the advancement and welfare of our state.
The chief minister made this statement at an interaction session at the Odisha Literary Festival (OLF), which was held here on Sunday and was organised by a National Media Company.
Yes, it is amiable, Patnaik said while replying to a question whether he has friendly relations with the Prime Minister.
In response to the question of whether the nation’s federal system is in danger, Patnaik said: As far as I and my government are concerned, we have a constructive relationship with the Centre. Our concern is only the development and welfare of our state. And the Centre cooperates with us on that.
Politically speaking, Patnaik’s assertion is noteworthy since certain regional parties and chief executives of states governed by the Congress have spoken out against the central government and claimed that the Narendra Modi administration has violated federal laws while dealing with non-BJP states.
During the previous UPA administration, Patnaik himself had a history of making similar claims.
The BJD asserted that it had maintained an equal distance from both the BJP-led NDA and the Congress-led UPA up till 2019.
After Patnaik backed BJP candidate Ashiwini Vaishnaw in the Rajya Sabha elections in 2020, the BJD’s relationship with the NDA appears to have shifted, leading the opposition Congress to refer to the BJD and the BJP as two sides of the same coin.
Patnaik stated that he respects the outcome of the by-election in the Dhamnagar assembly constituency.
In the Dhamnagar by-elections, BJP candidate Suryabanshi Suraj defeated BJD candidate Abanti Das by a margin of 9,881 votes.
Recently, the Dhamnagar MLA passed away. He had a huge following. A ticket was issued to his son. This seat had been held by the BJP for a while. Therefore, he continued, it was anticipated that they would win the seat.
The BJD president noted that the ruling party had fared quite well in previous panchayat and urban elections.
According to Patnaik, the BJP would be the BJD’s main political adversary in the next 2024 Lok Sabha and Assembly elections because the Congress has suffered in the state.