Rourkela/Bhubaneswar: Minister Sarada Prasad Nayak courted controversy by drawing blood from a volunteer at a blood donation camp and also showering money on a singer at a Qawwali programme in Sundargarh district. In separate incidents, Nayak, the Minister of Labour and ESI, was seen in viral videos showering money on a singer and drawing blood from a man. Though a nurse was standing at the blood donation camp held at the Rourkela Government Hospital October 16, Nayak used a needle and drew blood from the donor.
Questions were raised from various quarters about how the minister, who is the MLA of Rourkela, could draw blood at a camp without any experience. Nayak, however, defended his action while talking to reporters Wednesday after the videos went viral. “The donor requested me to draw blood and I respected his wishes with the help of a nurse. During the Covid-19 pandemic, when people were afraid to come outside, I worked with the health workers for 24 hours,” he said. In another video, Nayak was seen throwing currency notes during a music programme organised at a hotel in Sundargarh district Tuesday. “The renowned Qawwali singer was singing the glory of the country and the audience wanted to honour him. They requested me as a public representative to honour the singer. I offered him some cash which is purely from my hard-earned money. It is unfortunate that the matter has been portrayed in a bad light,” he said. The BJD leader was also seen dancing on the stage.
On this, Nayak said, “I can put steps in dance numbers since my student days. It was a festive occasion. The people requested me to dance and I just kept one or two steps to the wishes of the people. I am a conscious citizen and I am fully aware of my actions which are not intended to do any harm to society.” Nayak’s political opponents, however, are not ready to buy his explanations. Sundargarh’s BJP MLA Kusum Tete said, “It is said that such incident of showering money during Qawwali programmes is common. But if the minister has showered money, it shows that he has no dearth of money. He should offer money to people who are starving.”
Stating that people consider money as a form of Goddess Laxmi, Tete wondered what message he is giving to society. Local Congress leader Biren Senapati said, “The minister considers that bad publicity is better than no publicity. So, in order to remain in the limelight, Nayak is doing all such acts”.