The Janata Dal in Orissa has taken strong exception to the move to install yet another United Front government at the Centre with Congress support.
It will be suicidal and will prove to be the last nail on the Dal coffin, it said.
Eleven party MLAs, in a joint statement, here yesterday criticised the move, saying it would project the Front as opportunist and power-hungry, trying to cling on to the seat of authority at the cost of their principles and ideology. The statement said the party should draw lessons from the present development and reminded of the Orissa Dals misgivings about the Central party leaders decision to take Congress help 10 months ago.
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Ramakrishna Patnaik of the Dal said The Front is purely succumbing to the blackmailing tactics of the Congress and this will only pave the way for the rise of BJP.The near revolt by the Orissa party unit against the Central Dal leadership comes at a time when the state party unit is rocked by dissension and a succession war following the failing health of the its leader, Biju Patnaik.
A pressure group led by western Orissa MLAs had sought separate seat allocations in the assembly during the last session.
Sensing waning influence of the Dal among the electorates, the group is advocating for a political alliance with the BJP, which has seen a considerable swell in its vote bank in the state recently.
Dal leaders from coastal districts is, however, opposed to such a move and instead favours an alliance with the Left parties to score over the Congress.