BJD in soup over ‘horse trading' in Rajya Sabha poll

The political crisis in the ruling Biju Janata Dal took a new turn on Friday following a media expose claiming that two young Ministers of the Naveen Patnaik Government were involved in horse trading during last year's Rajya Sabha election with a Congress MLA.

A local TV channel ran stories claiming that it has audio evidence that Minister of Energy Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak and Labour and Employment Minister Pushpendra Singh Deo bargained with Congress MLA Sivaji Majhi to remain absent during the voting to ensure the victory of the BJD’s third candidate.

The media expose has created a flutter in political circles with the opposition political parties demanding removal and arrest of the two Ministers besides a CBI inquiry into the episode.

Puspendra Singh Deo was not available for his reaction, while Nayak defended himself as innocent and dared the Opposition to prove his involvement.

Singh Deo has been asked by the party leadership to catch hold of those alleged mediators, who had cunningly recorded his statements during telephonic talks relating to the outstanding payments towards the deal to persuade Congress MLA Majhi to abstain from the polling.

Atanu Nayak rubbished the allegation as politically motivated. "It is a well-planned conspiracy against me and to lower my party's image as the elections to the Panchayati Raj bodies are round the corner," he said.

He said the Opposition parties used to resort to such kind of political gimmicks prior to every election against the BJD. He dared the Opposition and the concerned media house to prove his involvement in the horse trading.

However, the Opposition BJP slammed the BJD for the horse trading to show its oneupmanship in politics. Dubbing it as unethical and illegal, BJP State president Jual Oram demanded that the 2010 Rajya Sabha elections be declared illegal and the State Government probe the entire incident through the CBI.

Condemning the "unethical" approach of the ruling BJD led by Naveen Patnaik to show its strength, Oram said that after the media expose, the two Ministers in question should be removed from the Ministry and they be arrested forthwith by initiating criminal proceedings against them.

Alleging that the ruling BJD had fixed the election of its three candidates despite the lack of numbers, Oram had said that BJD had managed to bargain with three MLAs, Sivaji Majhi, Grigori Minz of Congress and Bhimsen Choudhury of BJP In exchange of huge money to remain absent during the voting process to help the third candidate in form of Baisnab Parida to get through.

Similarly, the Congress announced that the party would take disciplinary action against Sivaji Maji for being sold to the BJD. PCC president Niranjan Patnaik said the issue should not be taken lightly and the CBI should inquire into the matter.