Subhas Chandra Pattanayak
If a few fine persons are yet discernible in the Congress party in Orissa, Youth Congress President Rohit Pujari is one of them.
But to the newly “appointed” President of Orissa Pradesh Congress Committee, K.P.Singhdeo, he is “undisciplined”.
To teach him lessons on how to have discipline he has not hesitated to deflate him in public at Deogarh on February 19 in front of all the Congress workers of the district as well as onlooker public, just to show how apt is he in marshalling his autocratic might.
KP had gone there to attend a conference of Congress workers conveyed for stock taking of organizational condition and preparation for the general elections.
Congress is quite atrophied in Orissa and no evidence is required to prove that. This has happened to this party basically because of the distance its leaders maintained from its workers. So, it should have been appropriate for the “appointed” President of PCC to go there into the midst of workers quietly in a car and contact them with confidence in order to revive their confidence in the leadership. But KP, “appointed” by the lady autocrat of the party of the American lobbyists preferred to land there from a helicopter.
It was clear that the “appointed” PCC chief was eager to have a dazzling road show of Congress campaign.
To fit into this environment, the YC unit of the area also decided to add its color to the show. So, in a procession singing glory to their President Rohit, the YC members came to the meeting venue.
KP was irritated to watch YC members singing glory to Rohit instead of him. But when Rohit took the microphone to address the gathering and the YC members again raised slogans in his praise, it was impossible on part of KP to tolerate. He, in a conniption, dragged back Rohit from the addressing post and scathingly roared that he does not like “such type of indiscipline”.
It was not only a shock to Rohit, but also to senior members present in the podium and to the workers in the audience.
The PCC President “appointed” by the Congress autocrat could not understand that there was only youthful effervescence, no ill motive behind the behavior of the YC members. He took the slogans in praise of Rohit as an affront to his glorious presence! Whosoever showed any symptom of disapproval was browbeaten to keep quiet.
A shocked Rohit left the podium as well as the meeting venue followed by the members of YC.
And thus has begun the Congress campaign in Orissa under KP.