Jatni civic chief, 7 councillors join BJP

Bhubaneswar: Ahead of BJP national president Amit Shah’s Odisha visit, Jatni Municipality chairman Sangram Keshari Routray and his supporters, including seven councillors, joined the saffron party today.

Routray, a relative of senior Congress leader Suresh Routray, and his supporters took the primary membership of BJP in the presence of its State president K.V. Singh Deo at the party’s State headquarters here.

“By joining the party, I have joined PM Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and K.V. Singh Deo in their goal to achieve development for the country,” Routray told mediapersons later.

Meanwhile, two senior Army officers Lt Col Jayaraman Tripathy and Col R.K. Patnaik also joined the saffron party after taking retirement from the force.