Odisha Assembly adjourned sine die; opposition hits out at ruling-BJD

Bhubaneswar: Opposition slammed the State government after Odisha Assembly Speaker Pradip Amat adjourned the winter session sine die today after just five working days.

The session which had begun on November 16, had 23 working days and was slated to continue till December 15.

"Though there was no agenda by the government for debate, there was a long list of issues which could have been discussed. The adjournment ahead of schedule is unfortunate and we condemn that," said Narasingha Mishra, Leader of Opposition.

Echoing similar views, BJP MLA, Rabi Naik said "As the ruling party had no answers for paddy procurement irregularities, it tried to avoid a debate. Therefore, we are boycotting the House."

Defending the decision to adjourn the house, ruling party chief whip, Amar Prasad Satpathy, said "The winter session was brief as there was no government work."

During the period, the House had passed a resolution for 33% reservation for women in assemblies and Parliament. Besides, it passed a motion for forgiving defence analyst Abhijit Ayer Mitra for his derogatory remarks against the lawmakers.

The ruling party and opposition Congress raised several issues including tree-felling for a beer factory, farmers' plight, utilisation of the Tribal Development Fund and slashing of the post-Matric scholarship fund for the Scheduled Caste (SC) students by the Centre.