Taking aim at Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and his administration, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said on Sunday that the state's government is being run by ‘Pandian’. Asserting that BJP and BJD are together, Rahul stated that While Prime Minister Narendra Modi runs a government for “millionaires” from Delhi, CM Patnaik’s government caters to “selected individuals” in Odisha.
“Government in Odisha is run by Pandian. While Modi runs govt for crorepatis from Delhi, Naveen Patnaik runs govt that works for select people in Odisha,” Rahul Gandhi said taking a jibe at Naveen Patnaik.
“They are benefitting 22 people. They have given PANN to Odisha. The state is being run by Pandian, Amit Shah, Narendra Modi, Naveen Patnaik, means PANN. They have looted you. Nine lakh crore was looted through the mining scam. 20,000 crore was looted through land grab. The plantation scam was of 15,000 cr. As soon as the Congress government is formed, we will start giving you back your money,” Rahul Gandhi asserted.
His statement came as the Wayanad MP intensified his party’s campaign in Odisha today, coinciding with the birth anniversary of Madhusudan Das, revered as the embodiment of “Odia pride and self-esteem”.
Addressing a public gathering in Kendrapara, Rahul lashed out at BJP and BRS, saying, “Telangana mai BJP aur BRS ki shaadi thi, unki roz waha barat nikalti thi aur drama hota tha. (In Telangana, BJP and BRS were married, their procession used to come out every day, and drama ensued. The Congress party showed in Telangana that BJP and BRS are one, and if anyone is doing the work of the opposition then it is the Congress party. We gave 5 guarantees which gave money directly to the poor people of Telangana in their bank accounts.”
“The leaders of BRS gave full benefit to the selected people. We went there and said that BRS gave the same amount of money to the rich people of Telangana which the Congress party will give to the poor people of Telangana. The result was BRS lost and Congress won the Assembly elections and formed the government,” he added.
Earlier in the day, Rahul Gandhi paid homage to Madhu Babu at Satyambhamapur in Cuttack district.
Odisha is set to witness concurrent Assembly and Lok Sabha elections across four phases commencing on May 13. The ruling BJP, led by Naveen Patnaik, has governed the state since 2000. Meanwhile, the BJP, once an ally of the BJP, emerged as the primary opposition force in the state since the 2019 polls.