Bhubaneswar, April 12: The ruling Biju Janata Dal leaders Monday worked overtime to satisfy queries of newsmen over the fate of Food Supply and Consumer Welfare Minister Sanjay Dasburma and stoutly defended him against Opposition demand for his ouster from the State Council of Ministers.
Party spokespersons Sameer Das and Amar Satapathy kept answering the questions of print and electronic media throughout the day and maintaining that the Opposition attempt to tarnish the minister’s image shall be a futile exercise.
Amar Satapathy claimed that the State government in no way can influence the investigation by the Central Bureau Investigation and rather is cooperating with it.
“It is not possible to influence the CBI investigation. It is doing its investigation in its own way. The State government is extending all cooperation it has sought in its probe,” he said.
Sameer Das said, “ the opposition parties are making a non issue an issue. They will not succeed in their attempt. They will fail in their attempt to tarnish the image of the government,” he asserted.
The demand for the sacking of Food Supply & Consumer Welfare Minister gathered more steam with opposition parties baying for his scalp even as Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik preferred to remain silent over minister Sanjay Dasburma allegedly receiving a car as gift from a chit fund firm.
Pradesh Congress announced to take to streets on April 26 demanding the resignation of Dasburma while BJP reiterated its claim that five companies run by the kin of the minister invested chit fund company funds which the Central Bureau of Investigation must probe.
“We have decided to stage a demonstration demanding the minister’s resignation. He has lost the moral right to remain in office and should step down immediately without which the ongoing CBI probe into the mega chit fund scam will be affected,” state Congress chief Prasad Harichandan said after a meeting of senior leaders here.
However BJD spokesperson Sashi Bhushan Behera said, “It is their constitutional right to hold demonstration on any issue. Let them do it. People have trust on us and we are well prepared to counter their stir.”
Meanwhile, CMD of tainted ArthaTatwa group Pradeep Sethi claimed that a non issue is being harped by politicians and political parties.
“I have admitted earlier that some vehicles were given for Assembly elections and some of them have not been returned so far. But a non issue is being harped on, he said adding that he would not like to say anything more on the issue as it is sub-judice. Sethi said, “Pajero issue is the biggest joke of the year. The man ( Dasburma) is innocent.”
The meeting at Congress Bhawan here was attened among others by senior leaders Lalatendu Bidyadhar Mohapatra, Srikant Jena.
Senior Congress leader Lalatendu Bidyadhar Mohapatra, who had brought the issue to the fore through the media, said he had raised questions about the identity of the person mentioned in the confessional statement.
