Paradip: Inaugural ceremony of Kalinga Baliyatra Mahotsav Thursday turned into an engaging political arena. The transformation though unwelcoming was much appreciated by the hundreds who witnessed the wrangle between the leaders on the dais.
Culture minister Ashok Chnadra Panda inaugurated the event. While Jagatsinghpur Collector and chairperson of Baliyatra Committee, Yamini Sarangi chaired the inaugural meeting. Health minister Pratap Jena, MP Kulamani Samal, local MLA Damador Rout, Balikuda-Ersama MLA Prashant Muduli, Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak, Zilla Parishad chairperson Priyadarshini Biswal, Municipality chairman Basant Biswal, ADM Kanhucharan Dhir and Surendra Kumar Sahu attended the meeting as guests.
As political observers, leaders, workers and commoners eagerly waited for the inauguration, there was a whisk of an unsought twist. Belligerent DamadorRout and the leaders of the ruling party were sharing the same stage, after all and as expected, the leaders did not disappoint.
Untill Dama’s podium entry, the plot was linear. The guests spoke on the rich maritime history of the State. The significance of the Mahotsav, the cultural events, so forth and so on. Thereafter climax entered th scene when Dama held the mouth piece; though he started with narrating the importance of Baliyatra, it bolted onto wrangling and slamming in no time. Starting from Jagatsinghpur superintendent of police (SP) to the Collector, the leaders and ministers on the stage upto the CM, no one was spared from the Dama brouhaha.
He started questioning as to why he was not contacted though he was already at the circuit house since 5 PM and why the Baliyatra was being politicised. He also wanted to know the reason why a chariot wheel was brought from Puri.
Targeting MP Kulamani Samal, he said Samal is in corruption from head to toe and is a contractor. When it comes to employment, he thinks only about his own relatives. While he asked Pratap Jena to look after his own area, slammed Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak saying he is meddling in Jagatsinghpur politics coming from a neighbouring district. He fanged at Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik referring the ongoing Daru and Nabakalebar issues.
After 45 minute long Dama’s speech, it was Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak’s turn to counter. He started by saying, “one should not enquire about one’s mother history when one is in uncle’s house”. Informing that he would not cross the deadline, he further asked Dama to say what he has done for the local youths as a local MLA and what was his role in Paradip’s development. Criticising further, he advised him to refrain from doing politics in the name of Biju Patnaik.
Kulamani Samal, not known for aggressive verbal combats, came heavy on Dama and said Dama is indulged in delivering such speeches since last 40 years using Bijubabu’s name. Dama keeps saying that Bijubabu handed over the responsibility of Paradip to him. But does he have any proof to corroborate it, he asked. Does it mean that only he, and no one else, stands for Paradip, he questioned.
Minister Pratap Jena refuted Dama’s criticism much longer than others. Stating Dama has little to no manners, he impeded to everything what Dama said and reacted to it. On a stage like Baliyatra festival, Dama should have spoken on the festivities, instead he targeted others on their personal and political lives. Also he should have introspected before criticizing others, he stressed.
Culture Minister Ashok Chandra Panda and Balikuda-Ersama MLA Prashant Muduli also slammed Dama and praised Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in their speeches.
The war of words between the guests overshadowed the cultural programmes of inaugural evening that continued till 10 PM, locals observed.
PNN