Bhubaneswar: Biju Janata Dal Friday termed the allegations made by BJP with regard to party’s poll funding as ‘‘false, malicious and fabricated’’ and sought an apology from the saffron party leaders for having approached the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and misleading the people by distorting facts.
The BJP has approached the Election Commission, Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate alleging that BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik misled the people by showing different amounts as his election expenditure in different documents.
Addressing mediapersons here Puri MP Pinaki Mishra and BJD Rajya Sabha MP Pratap Keshari Deb clarified that contrary to BJP’s allegations that the chief minister received Rs 16.48 lakh, Patnaik has returned Rs 6,48,320 to the party.
“This fact has been deliberately twisted,” said Mishra and added there are discrepancies in the election expenditure data of 80 per cent of BJP MPs. He said he will reveal the details about it soon before the media.
“We are surprised that our friends in the BJP, do not understand basic banking procedure,” he said, adding, “For effecting an RTGS transaction a cheque has to be issued. State bank of India Rajpath Branch vide L.No.BR/37/14,dated July 24, 2017 has clearly said the transactions are bona fide and legal and have been carried out as normal banking transactions in accordance with Negotiable Instruments Act.
“These are all available on ECI’s website on record. The expenditure statement made by party and candidate are matching and there is no discrepancy,” BJD MP Pratap Keshari Deb.
‘‘The facts related to the financial transactions of the party account has been deliberately twisted so that it seems like some dubious transactions,’’ he said.
The party further clarified the total poll expenditure of Naveen Patnaik was Rs 17,27,848. The amount he received from party was Rs 10 lakh, while he had returned Rs 6.48 lakh. Thus, the amount utilised by the candidate was close to Rs 3.52lakh and the party spent directly for candidate was Rs 9.58 lakh. This works out to Rs 13.10 lakh altogether. Remaining Rs 4.10 lakh was spent by the candidate from his own resources.
Patnaik won from Hinjilicut assembly constituency in Ganjam district in 2014. PNN