Warring factions are asked to swear allegiance to 'Prasad' and Gita, as well as pledge unity: BJD
Warring factions are asked to swear allegiance to 'Prasad' and Gita, as well as pledge unity: BJD
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Jagatsinghpur: To prevent defections, the BJD's district unit is forcing angry leaders and workers to swear by the Bhagavad Gita and 'prasad.'
Factionalism has splintered most panchayats in the Tirtol, Naugaon, Jagatsinghpur, Balikuda, Erasama, Raghunathpur, Kujang, and Biridi blocks.
Since the last two rural polls, the Tamasarani Nayak and Pravati Das camps have split the party unit in Mallasahi panchayat in Kujang.
Dhruba Charan Nayak, Tamasarani's spouse, is the BJD's choice for Sarpanch. Pravati has been retained as a nominee for panchayat samiti member. According to accounts, the party forced Nayak and Pravati to swear by the Loknath temple's 'prasad' in order to present a united front.
Water Resources Minister Raghunandan Das has requested local leaders to swear allegiance to Lord Jagannath's 'Mahaprasad' in order to support the party's candidates. The move was criticised by Surendra Biswal, a BJD leader from Apandra panchayat, and Amiya Sahoo, a BJD leader from Khalgaon panchayat.
After Tirtol MLA Bijaya Sankar Das requested local leaders to swear by the Bhagavad Gita to support party candidates, Biswajit Das, the secretary of the BYJD's district unit, resigned.
