Bhubaneswar: BJD chief and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has asked party MPs and MLAs to refrain from appointing their close relatives as their representatives or promoting them as block or notified area council (NAC) chairpersons.
"Family members and close relatives should not be engaged as representatives as this will demoralize party workers. I would also not appreciate family members being promoted as block chairmen or NAC chairmen at the cost of party workers," Patnaik said in a note being circulated among the party MLAs and MPs.
It is found that MLAs and MPs get a bad name some times because of their representatives, Patnaik said and asked the lawmakers to be very careful in nominating their representatives. "Effective and good party workers should be engaged as representatives of MLA and MP."
Patnaik, who met the party MLAs and MPs in groups, said in the 12-point advisory note that the people have reposed faith in BJD and given it a landslide victory. "We have to live up to the expectations of people and work hard for their welfare."
He also suggested the MPs to consult the MLAs in their segments before taking up developmental activities by utilising the development funds. "We should work as a team and I would not like to hear about the MLA group or the MP group," he asserted.
The BJD supremo also asked MLAs to be easily accessible to people and tour villages regularly and meet party workers and people. "Problems of groups or villages, different social groups, women SHGs and youth groups should be identified and solved as top priority," he said.
He stressed on responsible public behaviour of the lawmakers both in public places and inside the House.
He asked lawmakers to chalk out a plan for three years and to submit it to their respective district observers by August-end, as part of the preparations for the three tier panchayat polls due in 2017.
The BJD has 117 MLAs in 147 member Odisha Assembly and won in 20 of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in the state.