Canal digging in Brahmagiri: BJD leader criticises administration, BJP MLA responds

Political tensions erupted in Puri on Tuesday following the digging of a canal in Brahmagiri. Former MLA and BJD vice-president Sanjay Das Burma targeted the district administration. Speaking in front of a local police station alongside supporters, Das Burma alleged that the local administration is operating under political pressure.

Also Read: Villagers, police clash over canal digging in Odisha’s Puri

The BJD leader criticised the police for minimal action during the process. He vowed to strongly oppose such moves in the future.

“My specific accusation is that the district and block administrations should be conscious. I had never felt such ‘police excess’ in my long political career. The District Collector, issuing orders by sitting in Puri, must first reconsider his order,” Sanjay Das Burma said.

Reacting to Das Burma’s statements, BJP’s Brahmagiri MLA Upasana Mohapatra launched a counterattack, calling the protests “sheer theatrics under the guise of demonstration”. She further claimed that during the previous BJD-led government, certain development works were not executed, and now, even those works are not being allowed to proceed.

The clash highlights growing political friction in the region, with local leaders and supporters taking opposing stands over administrative actions and development projects. Both sides have emphasised their commitment to public welfare, but the ongoing dispute underscores the continuing politicisation of civic initiatives in Brahmagiri.

“Former MLA and the BJD leader (Das Burma) from my Assembly constituency segment has been resorting to theatrics since yesterday on the pretext of agitation. A proposal for a sub-canal was given in 1992. The BJD leader had written a letter in this regard in 2018 but failed to execute the project during the previous government,” the Brahmagiri MLA stated.