Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik slams BJP, says BJP is anti poor

Dubbing the BJP as pro-rich, BJD president and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik Tuesday said the saffron party had lost the assembly polls in the Hindi heartland for betraying the poor, farmers, women and youths.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his poll campaigns in the state during the day at Kendrapara and Balasore had accused the Naveen Patnaik government of failing on all fronts in the 19 years and had assured the people to usher in five times the development brought by BJD in five years if BJP is voted to power.

“The nation is not built on tall talks as are being indulged in by BJP leaders,” Patnaik said adding the saffron party has lost the confidence of the people of the country during its five-year rule at the Centre.

He ridiculed Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to the people of Odisha to ensure a ‘double engine’ government (government by the same party both at the Centre and the state), Patnaik asked “Why did BJP lose its second engine in Madhya Pradesh, Chhattishgarh, Rajasthan and Punjab?”

Patnaik was addressing several election meetings in Kendrapara, Balasore, Bhadrak and Jajpur Lok Sabha segments where polling is scheduled to be held in the fourth phase on April 29.

He said that though BJP was given a massive mandate in the 2014 elections, it had failed in Gujarat. “In the 2017 assembly polls the party had escaped sure defeat and could get only 99 seats in Gujurat’s 182 member assembly. This time BJP will lose in the entire country,” Patnaik said.

Criticising the BJP as “pro-rich”, he said the poor people of the country faced hardship due to demonetisation and GST has helped only the rich.

Farmers across the country are frustrated over BJP’s policies and are unable to get a raise in the minimum support price of food grains. The youths too lost their jobs due to BJP’s wrong economic policies, he alleged.

Calling BJP “anti-farmer”, Patnaik said it has blocked disbursement of funds to cultivators under Odisha government’s KALIA scheme. “I assure the people that all the eligible farmers will get two instalments of KALIA funds on the first day of the new BJD government,” he said.

Comparing the Ayushman Bharat scheme with the Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana, he said while the central programme has provision to provide health service upto Rs four lakh for women, the one by the state can provide facilities worth Rs 10 lakh.

Patnaik said the 4.5 crore people of Odisha are his family members and appealed to them to ensure victory of BJD candidates in the simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly elections in the state.