Damodar-Debasis meet raises eyebrows

BHUBANESWAR: The meeting between former minister Damodar Rout and suspended BJD MLA Debasis Nayak has warmed up the political atmosphere here. What has interested political circles about the meeting is that both the leaders are against the influence the parallel power centre, Rajya Sabha MP Pyarimohan Mohapatra wields in the BJD. The meeting assumes significance as it comes after the recent spat between Rout and Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Surjya Narayan Patro. Though the two leaders do not pose any threat either to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik or Mohapatra, they may emerge as rallying point for the disgruntled elements in the BJD. Rout raised the issue of the power centre in the BJD pointing fingers at Mohapatra after he was dropped from the Cabinet by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in the last reshuffle in May. Besides Mohapatra, Rout crossed swords with several other leaders in the party including the Revenue Minister and former minister Bishnu Das. Nayak was suspended from the party after he raised the issue of Naveen Patnaik’s functioning and several scams in the third term of  his tenure as the Chief  Minister.