Orissa JD chief quits Assembly post

At present, lobbying for the post of leader of the Opposition has taken precedence over the proposal to float a regional outfit. The announcement by the central leadership regarding the formation of a high-power steering committee is also said to have led to some of the rebels advocating a regional party to have second thoughts.

Prominent among those in the race for the post vacated by Das are former ministers Ramakrushna Patnaik, Bijay Mahapatra and Nalini Kanta Mahanty. Ramakrushna, however, denied that he was in the race, “unless there is a unanimous decision.”

Mahanty was recently summoned to New Delhi to discuss the crisis and is likely to return to Bhubaneswar with Ashok Das tomorrow.

Sources in the Dal said the Janata Dal Legislature Party (JDLP) would meet on Monday to elect the new leader of the Opposition. The State Assembly, which was adjourned for four days from Thursday, will resume that day.

Meanwhile, cracks appear to have developed among the dissidents advocating a regional party. Sources alleged that the emergence of Naveen Patnaik as the rebel leader is being resented by other senior dissidents. Besides, the mileage gathered by several Western Orissa leaders in Delhi has also disgruntled some of them.

Sources said the group led by Bijay Mahapatra, which had joined hands with the Western Orissa lobby for floating a regional outfit, is now having second thoughts after the soft position taken by the central leadership.

Besides, the resignation of Das has made the situation even more uncertain.The Western Orissa group, however, is in a Catch-22 situation, as its numbers fall short of the required one-third without the support of the Mahapatra group.

Earlier in the day, the dissidents had given an ultimatum to the central leadership to appoint Naveen Patnaik as the State unit president to avert an imminent split.

18 MLAs against alliance with BJP

As many as 18 Janata Dal MLAs from Orissa have announced that they are opposed to any type of understanding or alliance with the BJP. A letter to this effect was faxed to the central leadership of the party by the MLAs last night.

Announcing their loyalty, they strongly criticised those who were trying to break the Janata Dal and float a regional party.

The signatories to the fax message include Narasingh Mishra, Judhistir Dash, Surendra Nath Nayak, Prafulla Ghadei, Prafulla Samal, Mangala Kissan, Ranendra Pratap Swain, Duryodhan Majhi, Bira Sipka, Balabhadra Majhi, Jogendra Behera, Surjyamani Jena, Madhabananda Behera, Suryamani Jena, Madhabananda Behera, Bijay Ranjan Singh Bariha, Prasanna Patsani, Hrushikesh Nayak and Bikram Arukh.