Jayanarayan Mishra accuses BJD of stalling Odisha Assembly on orders from ‘super leader’

In a sharp political jab on Sunday, senior BJP MLA Jayanarayan Mishra accused the Opposition BJD of deliberately stalling proceedings in Odisha Legislative Assembly, claiming it is unable to function without directions from a so-called ‘super leader’.

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Addressing the media on current deadlock in the House, Mishra remarked, “BJD had a strategy from the start — they didn’t want the Assembly to function. The party supremo and Leader of Opposition (LoP) is incapable of coming to the Assembly; yet, their so-called ‘super leader’ (probably V.K Pandian) is the one who decides whether it runs or not.”

The BJP leader's comments have set off a wave of political discussions, both inside and outside the Assembly.

MLA Mishra further added, “This is a fight for second place now — silver or bronze. The real control is with the ‘super leader’, and even senior BJD members admit they’re following orders to shut down the House.”

“The day when BJD stalled the House, another opposition Congress party had raised the issue of fertiliser. Had they (BJD) been so serious about the problems of people, they could have taken part and debated on it. Rather, they (BJD) preferred to stall the Assembly. Thereby, they obeyed the instructions of their ‘super leader’,” the BJP leader asserted.

Meanwhile, the Deputy LoP Prasanna Acharya countered by urging for legislative normalcy. “We want the Assembly to function smoothly and discuss the real problems facing the State. But the government is refusing to provide a platform for debate,” he said, adding that the ruling party’s attitude is inexplicable and anti-democratic.

The controversy surrounding the ‘super leader’ remark has ignited political speculation, with many interpreting it as a veiled reference to Naveen Patnaik’s close associate.

The BJD has yet to issue an official response in this regard.