BJD’s bicameral House plan ‘rehabilitation’ scheme: Cong

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Bhubaneswar: Terming the ruling Biju Janata Dal’s (BJD) renewed decision for formation of legislative council (LC) in the state as a “rehabilitation” scheme for the dissenters in the party (BJD), a war of words ensued between the two.
Congress chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati said that prior to working out such a plan on a bicameral House, the issue should have been thoroughly taken up in the Assembly.
The lawmaker from Jeypore said, “The plan is to entice and rehabilitate the dissenters in the party.”
“The chief minister should have convened an all-party meeting prior to forming the panel on Vidhan Parishad. However, armed with a brute majority of 118 MLAs, the committee has been formed to serve the purposes of the ruling party,” Bahinipati added.
He alleged that when the committee was formed in 2015, the Leader of Opposition (LoP) was not taken into confidence.
“The ruling party is apprehensive about the upcoming assembly and general elections for which it has planned to form a legislative council,” he said.
He further said that the Congress would support the move only when it was done legally and by taking the opposition parties into confidence.
Notably, the state government has revived its plan for formation of LC in the state and decided to send a team to Bihar and Andhra Pradesh to study the functioning of the LCs there.
Earlier, when the committee was scheduled to visit Maharashtra and Karnataka for the same, Congress and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had termed the panel “illegal” as it was allegedly formed without due consultations with them. As a result only three members from the BJD had visited the states. Reacting on the issue, BJD vice-president and minister Surya Narayan Patro said, “Two MLAs of Congress and BJP are also members of this five-member panel.” He added that the committee has been formed after consideration of the proposal.