Bhubaneswar: All is not well in the BIju Janata Dal (BJD), the party that ruled the state for 24 years before it was dislodged from power by the BJP last year. While its top leader and former chief minister, Naveen Patnaik is reportedly not keeping well and the age, too, is not on his side, there are murmurings within the party about former IAS office and Patnaik’s one time confidant, VK Pandian trying to control the party again.
Pandian, who was criticized by party members in the wake of BJD’s defeat in the last elections, was in focus when a controversy erupted over the issue of conscience voting bu BJD Rajya Sabha members on Waqf Amendment Bill in the parliament last year. It had evoked sharp reactions from leaders like MP Muzibulla Khan who had complained to the party chief against colleague and floor leader Sasmit Patra over what was seen as an ambiguous and last-minute shift in stance on the contentious Bill cleared by both houses of Parliament.
Initially, the BJD had opposed the bill, aligning itself with Opposition and minority voices that feared that the proposed legislation would infringe on the autonomy and functioning of Waqf boards. But shortly before the bill was tabled in the Rajya Sabha, the party abruptly changed its position, refraining from issuing an official whip and allowing its MPs to vote according to personal discretion.
While Khan’s vote against the bill was successfully recorded, Patra and Sulata Deo voted in favour and Debashish Samantaray. The remaining three MPs later cast their votes manually, and their individual preferences remain a subject of speculation. BJD sources had suggested that Patra received the green light to not issue a whip from V.K. Pandian, Patnaik’s long-time bureaucrat-turned-political aide. The decision, it is claimed, was taken without consulting Patnaik himself.
Eversince a section of party leaders have been alleging that Pandian has been trying to control the party in various ways. Aware that Patnaik’s health may not permit him to run the party directly for a long time, the former bureaucrat, who is now acting from behind the scenes has been trying to create his own lobby with the support of leaders like Prasanna Acharya. Pandian’s influence was clearly visible when Patnaik was recently hospitalized in Mumbai and then in Bhubaneswar. The former bureaucrat, who once controlled both the party and the state bureaucracy, controlled even the flow of visitors to Patnaik, deciding who all would meet him.
The perception that Pandian, despite having retreated after the BJD’s Odisha assembly election debacle last year, continues to exert control from behind the scenes has deeply unsettled many in the party. A senior party leader said, “It is unfortunate that our party is still run by someone from the shadows.”
Former five-term MP and a founder member of BJD, Prasanna Patasani had alleged about the overwhelming influence of retired politician V K Pandian within the opposition party. Patasani, who joined the BJP last year, claimed that former chief minister Naveen Patnaik communicates only through signals from Pandian, who reportedly serves as his primary adviser. The veteran politician expressed frustration over unfulfilled promises and what he described as an undemocratic concentration of power.
This could make things further difficult for BJD and strengthen the position of BJP in the state.
