Bhubaneswar/New Delhi: Known as a deft and upright administrative officer, former IAS Aparajita Sarangi has an enviable distinction of bringing in lot of reforms in each of her postings. How much of that she can infuse into her career as a political leader as she joins the BJP remains to be seen in the days to come. Claiming to be possessing a strong value system all through her career, Aparajita, married to Odisha cadre civil servant Santosh Sarangi, assures to maintain the same in her stint as a people’s leader in an exclusive interview with Sivananda Rout of OTV in New Delhi soon after joining the party. Excerpts:
You still had 10-11 years of service left in your career, why did you do that?
The choice to quit IAS 11 years ahead of schedule and join politics has been a very decisive one and it has come after lot of introspection and consultations with various people.After nearly 24 years in service, I found that serving for the welfare of the people can give me contentment.
You had diferent options to chose from, the Congress and even the BJD under which you served as a bureaucrat. Why did you choose BJP?
I had contemplated a lot beore choosing BJP. I looked at party’s perspectives and its leader before going ahead with my decision. Just look at the party’s focus on development and no one else is comparable to it. Everyone says about development, but this party believes in speed in development. The works of PM Modi has also inspired me a lot.
Have you had any discussions with the party president regarding any specific roles that you might be assigned especially in the backdrop of talks doing rounds that BJP might gain if you are projected from Bhubaneswar?
Yes, I have discussed, but let me be clear that I have come into the party as a ‘karyakarta’ and without any expectations. When I was an IAS, I used to give a lot of emphasis on value-syetem, discipline and government servant conduct rules. The decision of the party is all and final. If the party decides that I should fight elections, it will be a huge challenge for me and I love to take challenges.
How do you think you will challenge the ruling-BJD which has been in power since last two decades?
That will be for everyone to see in the coming days.