BJP blames Odisha’s BJD govt for 2008 murder of VHP leader Saraswati
BJD leader VK Pandian on Saturday accused the BJP of triggering the 2008 Kandhamal riots after VHP leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati’s murder
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday blamed Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government for the 2008 murder of Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati which triggered riots in Odisha’s Kandhamal district and left 40 people dead.
The allegation was levelled two days after BJD leader VK Pandian accused the BJP of triggering the riots. “In Kandhamal, you asked the chief minister [Naveen Patnaik] questions. In Kandhamal, there was a bomb blast and bullets were fired. It [BJP] triggered riots in Kandhamal. Naveen...took strong steps and brought peace to Kandhamal,” said Pandian hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi attacked Patnaik and dared him to name 10 districts and their headquarters without a written note.
Pandian, a bureaucrat-turned-politician, responded to Modi’s remarks saying whenever the BJP is losing , its leaders talk of caste, region, and religion.
BJP’s Balasore member of Parliament (MP) Pratap Sarangi on Monday said Saraswati’s armed guards were withdrawn and no personal security officer (PSO) was present when the VHP leader was killed. “Swami Ji [Saraswati], who was a social activist, was misbehaved with when he went to the police station over threat to his life.” He said the government provided PSOs to Saraswati following multiple attacks.
Sarangi said instead of tightening Saraswati’s security, it was withdrawn. “All the security personnel went for lunch and the incident happened. Everything happened on the instructions of [chief minister] Naveen Patnaik. He is responsible for the murder as security cannot be withdrawn without the home department’s order,” said Sarangi. He asked why has not the government made public the reports of justices AS Naidu and SC Mohapatra in the case.
“I was an MLA [member of legislative assembly] at that time. I questioned the CM [chief minister] in the assembly for around 45 minutes. He did not answer a single question. I raised the matter of involvement of the then MP Radhakant Nayak and current BJD MP Sasmit Patra’s father.”
Without naming Pandian, Sarangi said a person has hijacked the governance in Odisha for five years. “We have respect for our CM but this younger babu [Pandian] has isolated the CM from others. Be it chief secretary and others, nobody is allowed to meet CM without the younger babu’s permission,” said Sarangi.
BJP leader Baijayant Jay Panda alleged that the state government has been outsourced and it is very concerning not only for the BJP but also for the state’s people.
