After letting the cat out of bag, ex Odisha FM seeks to make amends

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Sep 20:

After ripping Odisha Chief Minister and BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik apart in an explosive interview to ‘Sambad’, senior party leader Prafulla Ghadai today sought to make amends urging Patnaik to take action against law-breakers in the party who had tarnished the party’s image.

“Naveen Patnaik has always acted tough in the past whenever anybody has been been found guilty of wrong doing and I am sure he would do the same now,” Ghadai said today.

Referring to media reports in the recent past accusing some party leaders of illegalities, the former Finance minister urged party supremo Naveen Patnaik to take steps to save the party’s image.

“Naveen Patnaik is still the tallest and the most popular leader in the state. That is why the people of the state gave the BJD such a massive mandate in the last election. His image is BJD’s image. I am quite hopeful that he would take steps to restore the image of the party, which has been sullied of late due to allegations against certain party leaders,” Ghadai said.

“I am sure the problems that have cropped up in the party of late will be solved soon by the leader,” he added.

Ghadai and his son Pritiranjan met the chief minister at the Secretariat here today. He told reporters that he met the chief minister as a party worker and denied the report published in a section of the press quoting him lambasting Naveen.