Is Naveen Patnaik or Pandian leading BJD? Party leader Bhupinder Singh's remarks spark debate

Senior BJD leader Debashish Samantaray's recent statement on Pandian still leading BJD has received support from Bhupinder Singh. He also pointed out that during the last elections, posters of Biju Patnaik were nowhere to be seen, and a similar situation occurred in the Nuapada bypoll. 

According to Bhupinder, the BJD’s downfall began the moment Biju Patnaik’s image was sidelined. He stressed that it is impossible to imagine the BJD without Biju Patnaik at its core. 

Bhupinder further stated that dissatisfaction within the party has grown significantly over the way the party is currently being run. He also alleged that no opinions were sought from senior leaders during the selection of the Nuapada candidate.

Reiterating his stand, Bhupinder said there is no need for any 'successor' and that Naveen Patnaik should take over the party’s leadership.

Also Read: BJD leader Debashish Samantaray resigns from party post, cites ‘humiliating designation’ in letter to Naveen Patnaik

 Bhupinder's remarks have now raised a larger question. If Bhupinder’s claims are true, is Naveen Patnaik not leading the BJD at present?

"BJD has been named after Biju Babu. However, the party is not running as per his ideology. Forget about Biju Babu's ideology, his photo was not even seen during the 2024 General Elections. Same thing was seen in the byelection. Those who are running the party now have tried to remove the name of Naveen babu. They must not try to remove Biju Babu's name also. People will no more accept the party if they will remove both the names," said Bhupinder Singh.

"Everybody is dissatisfied in all the districts and all the places. The party ended up at the third place in the byelection. The young leaders are now worried about their future," he added.

In response to Debashish Samantaray's statement, senior BJD leader Prasanna Acharya said, "I don't know what he has written in his letter. I have not read it. I will know about it after reading. We have an old organisation. We have a strong and powerful party. Do misunderstandings not happen in a family? A man gets angry for different reasons. It also reflects inside an organisation."