10, Janpath makes peace with Patnaik

NEW DELHI, FEB 9: With the implications of Orissa Chief Minister J B Patnaik's resignation slowly sinking in, the Congress high command h...

NEW DELHI, FEB 9: With the implications of Orissa Chief Minister J B Patnaik8217;s resignation slowly sinking in, the Congress high command has extended a delayed olive branch to Patnaik. According to the agreement, he will choose his successor, or at least have a say in electing one, he could get a senior post in the AICC and action against dissidents will be taken.

Patnaik resigned yesterday after Congress president Sonia Gandhi asked him to. Sonia said popular perception was that Patnaik was making a mess of the law and order situation in the face of mounting attacks against Christians in the State. But today, 10, Janpath reacted in 8220;friendly8221; terms, following reports saying the CM still had massive support in the State and that a majority of MLAs announced their support to him soon after he reached Bhubaneshwar.

Apparently, Patnaik loyalists, who outnumber the dissidents by a huge margin, are planning to 8220;re-elect8221; Patnaik as the CLP leader in a few days in an attempt to show their displeasure at hissacking. Once this was conveyed to Congress president Sonia Gandhi, the tone and tenor of senior party leaders changed.

It is understood that Patnaik is still upset at the way he was told to step down by Sonia8217;s emissaries even before he had a chance to meet her yesterday.

Indications are that Sonia might send a team of party observers, including Madhavrao Scindia and Pranab Mukherjee, around February 15 to oversee the election of a new CLP leader. Their job essentially is to ensure that the new CM is chosen on the basis of 8220;consensus8221;, a euphemism for getting Patnaik to back the high command8217;s choice.

Also, since Patnaik is one of the senior-most Congress leaders in the country, he could be accommodated in the AICC at a high level. Recently, Sonia appointed seven AICC general secretaries but that number could be increased to accommodate Patnaik. Talk has also begun that he may even be the party vice-president, a post held by Jitendra Prasada before he was sacked.

The third aspect of the peace talksbetween 10, Janpath, and Patnaik is possible action against the seven-odd dissident leaders including Deputy Chief Minister Basant Kumar Biswal and PCC president Hemananda Biswal. Both have led more than half-a-dozen people in the anti-Patnaik campaign and some of them could be in for disciplinary action to balance the scales.

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Some embarrassment for the Congress high command was already on its way after the Orissa police arrested a man named Anju Pradhan, who is a Christian, for the rape of a Catholic nun three days ago. Since the main reason for Patnaik8217;s ouster was the safety of Christians, his supporters are keen to highlight the fact that the nun was raped by a fellow Christian.

In any case, the names of possible successors to Patnaik began doing the rounds today. PCC chief Hemananda Biswal, Deputy Chief Minister Basant Biswal, former Union Ministers Giridhar Gomango, K P Singh Deo and K C Lenka and State Minister Niranjan Patnaik are some of them. But it could be at least a week before Patnaik stepsdown officially giving the party time to agree on a new CM.

This evening, in an attempt to deflect the damage caused by Patnaik8217;s resignation, the Congress put the onus on the BJP to follow its lead in 8220;moral politics8221;. The idea being to show that the Congress changed its CM after minorities were attacked while the BJP is 8220;carrying on as usual8221;. The party also hailed Patnaik, saying he kept up the 8220;high standards8221; of the Congress.