Page 2 - Biju Janata Dal

With Jagannatha temple corridor, Naveen Patnaik's BJD looks to one-up BJP

With the grand unveiling of the Jagannatha heritage corridor, Naveen Patnaik plans to undercut any gains the BJP may have in Odisha because of the Ayodhya event

BJP's plea against BJD for using symbol to promote welfare schemes declined

The Delhi High Court on Friday declined to entertain a plea by BJP leader Jatin Mohanty seeking action against the Biju Janta Dal government in Odisha for using its party symbol of conch' while promoting the government's welfare schemes in advertisements. The court questioned the petitioner for approaching it instead of going to the Orissa High Court when the advertisements were being issued there. Why are you here? Go to Odisha and raise it before the appropriate court, a bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora said. It said it is not unique to one state and it is the story of every state now. As the bench was not inclined to entertain the plea, Mohanty's counsel sought liberty to withdraw the petition and file it before a court having jurisdiction over the issue which was allowed. The petitioner alleged there was arbitrary use and misuse of public funds by the BJD which was indulging in advertising various state government schemes, using the 'Conch' .

V K Pandian, Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik's former aide, joins Biju Janata Dal

The development holds significance for the BJD ahead of next year's Lok Sabha polls, as the party has started bolstering its organisational units in various constituencies

Former Odisha minister and Assembly Speaker Maheswar Mohanty passes away

Senior BJD leader and former Odisha Assembly speaker Maheswar Mohanty died at a private hospital here on Tuesday. Mohanty, who was also a former minister, was 67. He is survived by his wife and two sons. He was admitted to the hospital on November 1 after suffering a cerebral stroke, and died at 3.25 am on Tuesday, hospital sources said. Mohanty was elected to the Odisha Assembly from Puri constituency five times. He had successfully contested the assembly elections as a Janata Dal candidate in 1995 and as a BJD nominee in 2000, 2004, 2009 and 2014. Born on February 26, 1956, Mohanty had also served in the Naveen Patnaik government as a cabinet minister and had held portfolios such as Panchayati Raj, Revenue, Law and Tourism departments between 2011 and 2019. He was the speaker of the assembly from 2004 to 2008. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik condoled Mohanty's death and described him as a "popular leader with high organisational skills". He played an important role in the develo

BJD issues whip for RS MPs to support passage of Women's Reservation Bill

Meanwhile, on the Bill being brought in the Upper House, BJD MP Sasmit Patra said that Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has always supported the Bill and based on his instructions

BJD starts 'master trainer' programme ahead of 2024 Lok Sabha polls

With Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly elections due next year, the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has started 'Master Trainer Programme' where at least 200 grassroots level party workers from each 147 Vidhan Sabha segment will be trained on skills to win elections. The 37-day long training programme began here at 'Sankha Bhavan', the BJD headquarters here on Monday. "The master trainers will take the party's message to each household in the state and development is our main agenda. The people will be told how the Naveen Patnaik transformed Odisha from a poor state to a developing region," BJD vice-president and convenor of the training programme Debi Prasad Mishra said. Stating that the focus is on the achievement of the Patnaik government, Mishra said the state government's flagship programmes like Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana (BSKY) where women are given health assurance worth Rs 10 lakh, will be highlighted. He said the BSKY, launched on August 15, 2018, is the most effective scheme

Where the buck stops: BJP gets 3x more donations via poll bonds than others

Among regional parties, nearly 90% of the Biju Janata Dal's total donations worth Rs. 692.6 crore came from electoral bonds at Rs. 622 crore

PM Modi takes dig at BRS during Telangana visit, calls KCR govt corrupt

In a veiled dig at the ruling BRS in Telangana and the AAP government in Delhi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday said it was for the first time that allegations of corruption deal between two political parties and state governments were cropping up. Pacts between two state governments for welfare and development issues like sharing water are common, but it is for the first time that such allegations are levelled against two parties, he said referring to the Delhi excise policy case. While AAP leader and former Delhi Deputy Chief Mninister Manish Sisodia has been arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) over the matter, BRS leader and Telangana CM K Chandrasekhar Rao's daughter, K Kavitha, had appeared before the ED for questioning in connection with the case. Addressing a public meeting after laying the foundation stone for various projects worth Rs 6100 crore here, Modi said the BRS government has used up an entire dictionary to shower abuses on the central government a

Odisha bypoll: BJP's Suryabanshi ahead of BJD's Abanti Das in Dhamnagar

BJP candidate Suryabanshi Suraj registered a lead over his BJD rival Abanti Das by 3,261 votes after the initial rounds of counting of votes for Dhamnagar bypolls in Odisha's Bhadrak district, Election Commission (EC) trends revealed on Sunday. According to the EC, Suraj secured 18,181 votes in the first four rounds of counting, while BJD candidate Abanti Das bagged 14,920. Congress nominee Baba Harekrushna Sethi got 557 votes. An election official said a three-tier security arrangement is in place for the counting exercise. A central supervisor, an assistant supervisor and a micro-observer are present along with party agents at the counting centre, the official said. The Dhamnagar seat fell vacant following the death of BJP MLA Bishnu Charan Sethi in September. At least 68.98 per cent of the seat's 2,38,417 voters had cast their votes in 252 booths of Dhamnagar on November 3. Suraj, son of the deceased MLA, said, I am fighting the election from Dhamnagar as a local who knows ab

Archana blackmailing case: BJP to gherao Odisha CM Patnaik's house today

The BJP has announced that its activists will gherao Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's residence on Monday to protest against his "silence" over the high-profile Archana Nag blackmailing case and demanded a CBI probe into the matter. The Congress also hit out at the chief minister, who also holds the home portfolio, and sought a statement from him on the alleged involvement of ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leaders in the case. Nag, a 26-year-old woman, was arrested by police on October 6 on the charge of blackmailing people including politicians allegedly by trapping them in a sex racket. Her husband was also arrested later. "The chief minister is silent even as several BJD leaders are involved in the scandal linked to Archana Nag. The BJP wants the CM to give a statement on the issue," BJP state general secretary Lekhashree Samantsinghar told reporters here. She alleged that despite being aware of everything about the case, Patnaik who is also the BJD president, remained silen

Centre's softness towards Naveen Patnaik puts Odisha BJP in difficulties

The BJD is not an NDA constituent but always bailed out the ruling alliance when there was a legislative jam over a disputatious Bill

Five Union Ministers to campaign for BJP candidate in Odisha by-election

The list submitted to the Election Commission of India by the Odisha BJP unit included names of Union Ministers - Piyush Goel, Dharmendra Pradhan, Pralhad Joshi, Ashwini Vaishnaw and Biseswar Tudu

Will continue to question Kejriwal despite 1,000 cases against me: Bagga

The BJP leader said that he was arrested recently by the Punjab Police as he asked Kejriwal about his promise to act against those who dishonoured the Guru Granth Sahib in Punjab

Odisha MLA among 5.8 lakh students appearing for Class 10 board exam

Angada Kanhar, the state's Phulbani legislator, wrote his second language paper at Rujangi High School in Pitabari village of Kandhamal district

Biju Janata Dal to field 27% OBC candidates in upcoming panchayat polls

Te ruling Biju Janata Dal president Naveen Patnaik Friday decided that his party will field candidates from OBC for 27 per cent of seats in the forthcoming three-tier panchayat elections in Odisha.

BJD criticises centre for lower allocation of Rail funds, BJP trashes claim

BJP leaders asserted that Narendra Modi has all along given priority to the state and provided sufficient money

Parliament: Congress, TDP, BJD MPs give zero hour notices in Rajya Sabha

Three Rajya Sabha MPs--one from the Congress, one from Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and one from Biju Janata Dal (BJD)--have given zero hour notices in the Upper House to raise different issues

State battles no indicator of national politics

It would be wrong to assume Modi government can be defeated after BJP's performance in Jharkhand

Govt yet to provide compensation to states for farmers' losses: Opposition

Opposition MPs said the farmers were hit by unseasonal rains, floods and demanded that the Centre should give immediate monetary relief

With Patnaik at helm, Odisha cannot be ignored any more: Achyuta Samanta

Support to a candidate for a constitutional position, or to some key decisions in national interest does not imply that the BJD will tie up with the BJP at any level, says Samanta