Tribal chief minister has deceived the tribal community in the state, says Congress, as the BJP government completes one year in office
NEW DELHI – The Congress has lambasted the one-year rule of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Odisha, claiming it was a year of betrayal for the people of the state. The party said far from fulfilling any of the promises the BJP made before the elections, its one year in power has been marked by rampant corruption, loot and plunder of the state and its resources, besides atrocities and denial of justice to the tribals.
Addressing a press conference at the AICC headquarters here on Monday, the party in-charge for Odisha Ajay Kumar Lallu, PCC president Bhakta Charan Das, CLP leader Rama Chandra Kadam and party MP from Odisha Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka charged that while corruption was at its peak, farmers and tribals were feeling cheated and betrayed.
The party leaders noted that it was unfortunate that despite having a tribal chief minister in Odisha, the tribal community was the worst sufferer. They said, whether it was brutal atrocities or denial of their rightful dues, the tribals had faced the worst under this government.
Bhakta Charan Das said the BJP had formed the government with a promise of ‘zero tolerance’ for corruption. But, he said, corruption was at its peak within just one year of the BJP rule. He said that from the ministers to officers, everyone was neck-deep in corruption.
Citing the example of a chief engineer in the Rural Development Department who was arrested with a huge amount of cash and found to own a dozen buildings, Das asked, how could it be possible without the entire system being involved? He said the farmers were also betrayed by the government, as their paddy was either not being procured or they were being sold for Rs 250 to Rs 300 less than the MSP.
Ajay Kumar Lallu said migration was the biggest issue in Odisha as people were being forced to leave the state in search of jobs. During the last year, he said, nothing had changed for the people of Odisha.
Ram Chandra Kadam charged that members of the tribal community were being dispossessed of their land and other properties. He said it was the worst betrayal of the tribal community under a tribal chief minister.
Saptagiri Ulaka said that the BJP government was trying to impose the three-language formula in Odisha at the cost of the Oriya language. He said the BJP government had also reneged on the pension and other schemes it had promised before the elections.
