Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik survives coup bid

Ratikant Mohanty / source: www.indusvalleytimes.com Bhubaneswar, May 30: Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik breathed a sigh of relief on Wednesday he survived a vertical split bid by the party dissidents led by party’s Rajya Sabha member Pyarimohan Mohapatra. The dissidents put on hold their plan to stage a “possible coup” for the time being. The dissidents, who on Tuesday had held separate meetings at the Sahid Nagar residence of Mr Mohapatra and in a star hotel to finalise the split process desisted from their bid as they failed to manage the required number. The BJD has 104 legislators in the 147-member state Assembly. The dissident camp had also calculated to get support of some Congress, NCP and BJP legislators. Of the 33 MLAs and three ministers, who on Tuesday evening pledged support to Mr Mohapatra, changed their allegiance on Wednesday. Some of them showed off at Naveen Niwas at the chief minister’s residence to escape disciplinary action, thus upsetting the dissident camp’s plan. Chief minister Naveen Patnaik, meanwhile, cut-short his nine-day trip to foreign countries, and is returning to Bhubaneswar to handle the crisis. The dissident leader Mr Mohapatra, while addressing a crowded press conference at the Swosti Premium Hotel here, said he had not plan to split the party. Mr Mohapatra admitted that the party president Mr Patnaik had come under the “evil” influence of a “group of conspirators” in the party forum. “The party chief has come under the evil influence of a group of conspirators who want to finish the party. I just wanted tell these conspirators they cannot kill the party for their vested interests,” he said. Ruling out any “threat” perception from his side to the chief minister, Mr Mohapatra clarified that the Tuesday’s meeting of legislators at his residence should not be construed as a revolt against the party leadership. “I don’t have any plan to dislodge Naveen Patnaik. The legislators do come to my residence regularly for consultation on different issues. On Tuesday, they came to me to discuss some issues. Many of the legislators complained about neglect by bureaucrats to legislators. They even alleged about not getting adequate attention in the party forum,” he said. Asked if he wanted to be chief minister, Mr Mohapatra said, “At this moment, I do not have any ambition to become the CM. Had I any ambition to become CM, I would have been so long before in 2009 when the party came to power in the state for the third term. Of the 130 BJD who contested elections, more than 90 per cent got tickets on my recommendations,” he claimed. ------ source: www.indusvalleytimes.com source: www.indusvalleytimes.com source: www.indusvalleytimes.com