Bhubaneswar: Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Odisha Assembly, Naveen Patnaik, has decided to forgo the recent hike in his salary and allowances.  

Patnaik today wrote to Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and urged him to spend the money for the welfare of the poor people in Odisha.

“I would like to forgo the salary and allowances hiked for the Leader of Opposition which the Odisha Assembly has recently passed. I would like to request you to utilize the same for the welfare of poor people of our state,” said Patnaik, the president of Opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in his letter to the Chief Minister. 

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Patnaik, a five-time former Chief Minister of Odisha, highlighted the love and affection of the people of the state to his family, including his father and legendary leader Biju Patnaik.

Our family had donated ‘Anand Bhawan’ in 2015, said the BJD president  

“You may kindly be aware that in the year 2015, our family decided to donate its ancestral property Anand Bhawan in Cuttack to be put for the use by the people of Odisha,” Patnaik added in his letter.    

It is worth mentioning here that the Odisha Assembly recently cleared four Bills providing a three-fold hike in the salary and allowances of the legislators in the state.

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The salary of an MLA in Odisha has been revised to Rs 90 from Rs 35,000 while the allowances have been hiked to Rs 2.55 lakh from Rs 65,000.

With the latest revision, the Chief Minister will get a monthly package of Rs 3.74 lakh, Assembly Speaker and Deputy Chief Minister Rs 3.68 lakh, Cabinet Ministers and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rs 3.62 lakh and Minister of State Rs 3.56 lakh.