Bhubaneswar: The Opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) Tuesday accused the BJP of compromising Odisha’s mineral revenue and failing to protect the state’s interests in the Mahanadi and Kotia disputes, alleging that political compulsions and the party’s dependence on the TDP at the Centre had weakened its resolve.
In a post on X, BJD spokesperson and media coordinator Lenin Mohanty alleged that the BJP’s support for the MMDR Amendment Act, 2026, had deprived Odisha of its rights over mineral-bearing land, besides causing a loss of Rs 1 lakh crore in pending dues and Rs 12,000 crore in annual revenue. He claimed that the BJP had placed the interests of a few industrialists above those of Odisha’s 4.5 crore people, including the younger generation.
Mohanty also targeted the BJP government over the Mahanadi dispute, alleging that despite more than two and a half years in power, the party had failed to deliver on its promise of resolving the issue.
On the Kotia dispute, he recalled that BJP leaders had raised slogans such as “Go back, Andhra!” when the BJD was in power and that a 16-member Kotia Committee had been constituted. However, he alleged, the exercise had yielded no tangible results.
The BJD leader further accused the BJP government of remaining silent on the issue while Andhra Pradesh had announced elections in Kotia. He attributed the BJP’s alleged reluctance to act to its dependence on the Telugu Desam Party (TDP), claiming that any confrontation could jeopardise the TDP’s support for the BJP-led government at the Centre.