A series of tweets sent out by Biju Janata Dal MP Tathagata Satpathy’s office on Monday hinted at a rift within his party and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party of causing it. Referring to “rumours afloat”, Satpathy claimed the BJP was trying to create an “All India Anna Dravid Munnetra Kazhagam-type split within the party” in the Parliament with the support of one BJD MP.
“They [BJP] want to take away [BJD’s] party name and and symbol. Rumors are afloat that only one MP will swing this deal for them,” Sathpathy tweeted. The BJD MP did not name the colleague concerned.
His post claimed that the BJP was trying to push for early elections in Odisha, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. One of the posts took a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi by playing on the promissory clause. “I promise to pay the bearer...’ Modi broke nation’s promise. BJP says ‘I promise to pay defector with new cash and ticket,” he tweeted.
The BJD legislator said Modi’s participation at the upcoming BJP National Convention on April 15 and 16 April in the state was a bid to make the state government defunct.
The saffron party hopes to replace Naveen Patnaik’s Biju Janata Dal, which has dominated the state for 17 years, in the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections. The polls have been scheduled for 2019.
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