Naveen makes a trip to Raj Bhavan without Pandian, puts in papers

BHUBANESWAR: Naveen Patnaik’s uninterrupted 24-year stint as Odisha CM ended Wednesday, 141 days short of eclipsing Sikkim stalwart Pawan Kumar Chamling’s record of chief ministerial longevity, after he handed his resignation to governor Raghubar Das and told his BJD colleagues that there was nothing to be ashamed of in the party’s poll performance.
He will continue as caretaker CM till a new govt is sworn in.
“When I became CM for the first time, 70% people of Odisha were below the poverty line. Now, only 10% people are below it. Our efforts in agriculture and irrigation, and women empowerment, have led to this achievement,” Naveen, 77, told his MLA colleagues.
“We have served the people of Odisha. We will continue serving them,” he said, also calling for introspection.
Tamil Nadu-born bureaucrat-turned-politician V K Pandian, whose name cropped up often during BJP’s campaign as the “outsider” who allegedly pulls the strings in BJD, was conspicuous by his absence when Naveen visited Raj Bhavan. In the run-up to the polls, he would be a constant presence beside the CM.
BJD’s debacle at the hustings — the party won 51 seats to BJP’s 78 in the 147-member assembly — is being attributed to factors ranging from flawed candidate selection and unilateral decision-making to relying overly on Pandian. In the Lok Sabha contest, BJD drew a blank.