Seething in anger over the BJD’s alleged indulgence in horse-trading in the recently held Rajya Sabha elections, the Congress is leaving no stone unturned to see that the much claimed “transparent” character of the former is exposed. The party, for the second day on Wednesday, launched a scathing attack on the BJD charging that the
ruling party abducted one of its MLAs and forced two other legislators — one from the Congress and the other from the BJP — to abstain from voting to facilitate victory of its third candidate, Mr Baishnab Parida. Mr Parida, who won the elections by defeating the united Congress-BJP Opposition candidate Tara Ranjan Patnaik, did not have support of the required number 37 MLAs.
The Congress insisted the Patnaik government must come out with explanations as to why the police did not act even though the party filed a complaint on abduction of its Lanjigarh MLA, Mr Shivaji Majhi a day before the RS polls.
It wanted further “specific” answer as to why the police had not acted in the “mysterious” missing of BJP MLA Bhimsen Choudhury, similarly just a day before the polls.
Realising that the opposition was no mood to cooperate in the business of the House till the government came out the clarifications, the Speaker asked the Congress and BJP members to discuss the issue in the form of an adjournment motion.