Bhubaneswar: The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) today suspended its senior leader Prafulla Kumar Mallik from the party.

The former Kamakhyanagar MLA was suspended from the regional party with immediate effect for his involvement in anti-party activities, an order issued by the BJD said.

However, Mallik said that he had already resigned from the party and was not suspended. Mallik said he had tendered his resignation from the primary membership of the BJD, citing personal reasons.

Expressing dissatisfaction over the functioning of the BJD, Mallik, a former minister, had yesterday threatened to resign from the party. The BJD failed to function as the main Opposition in the state, he had said.

Reacting to his remarks, BJD spokesperson Pratap Jena described Mallik as an opportunistic politician. He pointed out that Mallik had been elected four times on a BJD ticket and had served as minister in key departments such as Works and Mines.

“Party president Naveen Patnaik himself campaigned for him. But after BJD's 2024 election defeat, he has started criticising the party. True commitment is tested in tough times, and Mallik has failed that test,” Jena said.