Odisha Congress targets 5T Secretary for holding meetings across Odisha 

Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president, Sarat Pattanayak on Friday launched a tirade against 5T Secretary VK Pandian, saying those officers who want to work like the party workers of the BJD and the BJP, should first resign from their posts. 

Addressing a press conference, the OPCC chief said, “5T secretary VK Pandian is visiting districts and holding grievance meetings. There is heavy security arrangement at the meeting sites. Who has given him the right to attend these meetings? If he is saying that the Chief Minister has given him the order to hear people’s grievances, then he should show the written order to the people. If the 5T secretary is hearing the grievance meetings, what will be the role of the Collectors?” 

While referring to his taking grievance meetings as a violation of the Officers’ Act, he said “The BJP, which is ruling at the center, should raise the issue. I would like to ask the officers that if they want to work like the workers of the BJD or the BJP, they should first resign from their posts. In the coming days, the Congress won’t brook any such illegality and will hit the streets.”

Ruling BJD MLA, Bhupinder Singh hit back and said no matter how much the Opposition protests, they can’t stop the development. “People will take the right decision at the time of election,” he said.