Bhubaneswar: The BJD Monday demanded dismissal of Steel and Mines minister Bibhuti Bhusan Jena in the wake of ED raids against illegal sand and black stone mining in Ganjam district.
During the raids January 16, ED in a statement stated that its sleuths seized Rs 2.63 crore in cash, at least 10 luxury cars, properties and mining documents.
BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty, in a press conference here, alleged that one of the ED raid locations was the place of Sunil Patro, who was the minister’s representative in Gopalpur assembly constituency.
Mohanty circulated a letter of recommendations made by the minister to the Ganjam District Collector, which contained Sunil Patro’s name at the press conference.
“The ED raids revealed the involvement of Sunil Patro in the illegal sand mining. It is sufficient to prove minister Jena’s involvement also in the illegal sand mining,” Mohanty said and called upon chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi to prove his competence and transparency by sacking Jena.
Reacting to BJD’s demand for his sacking from the ministry, Jena said, “This is just gibberish…Even since our government came to power, we adopted zero tolerance to illegal mining…those who are in the mining trade, may be friends of ministers… but I do not know who my friend is.”
Mohanty ridiculed Jena’s statement and said, “The minister’s remarks resemble the behaviour of a thief who, after being caught, starts shouting thief, thief to prove that he himself is not a thief-something the people of the state understand very well.”
The BJD leader said that his party has repeatedly brought mineral thefts to the notice of the government and demanded stringent action. However, the government has remained completely indifferent. Now, after the recent ED raid in Ganjam district, it is “clearly established” that the Mines minister’s representative himself was involved in minor mineral theft.
Mohanty claimed that since the BJP came to power in the state, incidents of sand theft and mining theft have increased alarmingly.
“BJD has consistently alleged that this theft is taking place with the patronage of the ruling party. As a result of theft carried out under government patronage, revenue from minor minerals, which stood at Rs 1,485 crore in 2023-24, has declined sharply to Rs 600 crore in 2024-25.”
Similarly, revenue from major minerals has fallen from Rs 50,000 crore to Rs 34,000 crore, he said, adding that due to sand and other mineral theft, the prices of sand and related materials have increased unreasonably.
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