BJD's Bobby Das threatened to revoke my Rajya Sabha membership: Mamata Mohanta

The chain of events leading to the resignation of Mamata Mohanta from the Rajya Sabha and the BJD and her subsequent decision to join the BJP is unraveling day by day. More skeletons of ‘unconstitutional acts’ by the BJD are tumbling out after the resignation of the prominent Kudumi community leader.

Mohanta was allegedly threatened with removal from the Rajya Sabha. Moreover, her MP funds were reportedly being transferred to other districts instead of being used in her district. Such startling facts have come to the fore from the statements of Mohanta. 

Reportedly, her MPLAD fund of Rs 100.00 lakh (Rs 1 crore) was being transferred to Jajpur block instead of development works in her constituency in Mayurbhanj without her consent. She was targeted and threatened to be removed from Rajya Sabha after she canceled the transfer of the Rs 1 crore money to Jajpur.

“I believed them. But all the decision was taken by the party on the allocation of the funds. This apart, I was paid no heed, be it in party programmes or government programmes. They were upset whenever I tried to do well,” Mohanta stated.

Her decision to cancel the funds reportedly led to a dispute with Pranab Prakash Das, most popularly known as Bobby Das, who is the former MLA of Jajpur. The rift was so intense that Das had even threatened to revoke Mohanta’s Rajya Sabha membership.

“No one paid heed even after I complained several times. They even threatened to withdraw my Rajya Sabha membership,” Mamata alleged. No comments were received from Das in this regard while BJD termed the allegations baseless. 

“Mohanta has not only betrayed Odisha and BJD but also her Kudumi community. Neither she held talks with her supporters at the district level, nor did she meet former CM Naveen Patnaik. She has been bought and she betrayed everyone for a few bucks,” alleged Sananda Marndi, BJD leader.

Similarly, BJD's Sarada Jena stated, “If her allegations are true and she was really being threatened, she could have approached the media or voiced her problems through various forums. But, she has not done anything. So, everything she says now is baseless and fake.”

Mamata Mohanta is a prominent leader of the Kudumi community in Odisha, who was elected to the Upper House of Parliament as a member of the BJD. She resigned from the Rajya Sabha and BJD on July 31 and later joined the BJP the next day.