Odisha Law Minister slams Opposition for defaming State over Law and Order

Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan has strongly responded to the Opposition’s allegations regarding ‘deteriorating law and order’ in the State. On Tuesday, he accused both Congress and BJD of deliberately defaming Odisha for their political gains through misinformation and baseless campaigns post-electoral loss during the 2024 General Elections.

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According to sources, in a sharp rebuttal to the Opposition’s criticism on law and order issues, Odisha Law Minister accused the rival parties of maligning the image of the State for political advantage. He stated that the Congress, under the leadership of Bhakta Das, is attempting to defame the State, echoing similar actions by senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi at the national level.

Harichandan asserted that both Congress and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) have begun spreading false propaganda against their own State after losing power. He criticised them for making baseless statements that could tarnish Odisha's reputation and emphasised that political battles should be fought with honesty and integrity.

“If we compare the law and order situation and crime rate of previous years, we will get to see, the available statistical data clearly reveals that the situation has improved a lot during the last year. Unnecessarily, they (Congress and BJD) are indulging in a process to defame the State,” the senior BJP leader remarked.

“The Congress leader at centre, Rahul Gandhi, is defaming the country and the party led by Bhakta Babu here (in Odisha) is defaming the State,” the senior BJP leader stated.

“If they want to engage in political fights, they should do it the right way,” the Minister said. “We are fully prepared to respond,” the Law Minister added.
However, no comments were received from Congress and BJD in this regard.