Cuttack: Shortly after BJP and BJD supporters started a war of slogans during a non-political programme here Monday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah made it clear that the Centre seeks to develop Odisha in cooperation with the state government. Amit Shah, sharing dais with BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, also said that with a number of people from Odisha heading some top offices of the country, the state has been experiencing ‘Achhe Din’ (good times).
Besides Shah and Patnaik, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan who is from the state attended the 75th anniversary of ‘Prajatantra’, a leading Odia daily, at an indoor stadium where an equal number of seats were allocated to supporters and leaders of the two parties.
As the programme was about to begin, slogans like ‘Amit Shah Zindabad’ and ‘Naveen Patnaik Zindabad’ rent the air in the stadium. There was a poster war between the two parties ahead of Shah’s arrival in the state.
The supporters of the two parties stopped shouting slogans only after Pradhan made an appeal to the audience to calm down.
“Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi ji, we are trying our best to achieve the overall development of Odisha in cooperation with the state government. He wants that as Team India, both the central and state governments work together for the development,” Shah said in his address.
Mentioning that ‘Achhe Din’ has already come for Odisha, the Union Home Minister said that from the President of India to the RBI Governor, Odisha has the maximum number of representatives at the national level.
“A woman from a poor tribal village of Odisha has gone on to become the ‘Mahamahim’ (Honourable President) of India. Dharmendra Pradhan is the Union Education Minister and Ashwini Vaishnaw is the Railway Minister. (Bisheswar) Tudu is also a member of the council of ministers. Odisha had never got such a huge representation at the national level since Independence. Therefore, it is Achhe Din for the state,” Shah said.
Noting that Odisha has huge potential to emerge as a ‘state of possibilities’, Shah said, “There is a long coastline, rich mineral resources, forests and talented human resources here. I see a great future here.”
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Shah drew a parallel between Odisha and his native state of Gujarat and said that Lord Jagannath is widely worshipped in the two states.
“Odisha is located in the east, Gujarat in the west. Lord Jagannath is the one who unites people of east and west,” Shah pointed out.
Shah also heaped praises on Dr Harekrushna Mahtab, the founder of ‘Prajatantra’, for his contribution to the freedom struggle. Shah said that people will also remember Dr Mahtab for his work to promote Odia literature.
Meanwhile, BJP’s Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi alleged earlier in the day that protocol was breached as only a special secretary of the Home department represented the Odisha government at the airport when Shah landed here at around 1.30am Monday.
Sarangi raised questions over the absence of the Odisha Minister of State for Home, the Home Secretary or the Director General of Police (DGP) during Shah’s arrival.
Before the programme at the indoor stadium, Shah offered prayers at Lingaraj temple here and visited the Netaji museum in Cuttack, where he also paid floral tributes to the revolutionary leader.