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Bhubaneswar, June 2: A day after appointment of Sam Pitroda as chairman of Congress’ Overseas Department, Opposition BJP Friday intensified its demand for removal of Pitroda from the post of state government’s technical advisor.
“There is no point in keeping Pitroda as the technical advisor of the state government after his appointment as the chairman of Congress’ overseas department,” BJP spokesman Sajjan Sharma told reporters here.
Pitroda enjoys the status of a cabinet rank minister as technical advisor to the state government. He has, however, not availed any kind of facility (as available for a cabinet minister) and takes a token salary of Re 1 a month.
Claiming that BJP’s earlier allegation that there exists a ‘nexus’ between Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and AICC president Sonia Gandhi through Sam Pitroda has now been vindicated, Sharma said, “Pitroda should immediately be removed from the Cabinet rank.”
The BJP state vice-president Samir Mohanty also alleged that Pitroda was involved in the National Herald case. “There should be no doubt over the existence of nexus between the ruling BJD and opposition Congress in the state which is not a good sign for the people,” he said adding that BJP would further intensify its agitation till the removal of Pitroda.
The BJP leaders claimed that the people of Orissa have always suffered due to such alliances between the ruling party and the opposition.
“It is wrong to say that the ruling BJD is maintaining equidistance from Congress and BJP. We can claim that Naveenbabu has been maintaining zero distance with Congress and Sonia Gandhi,” Sharma said.
Meanwhile, BJD spokesman Amar Prasad Satpathy said Pitroda is a respected person with wide experience in telecom engineering and should not be measured in political parameters.
Congress chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati said the people in BJP should welcome Pitroda that the state is getting the service of such a ‘great’ technocrat. PNN
