Foundation Day Confounds BJD Members

Subhas Chandra Pattanayak

Lack of self-confidence and language of frustration sic passim its President’s speech confounded the BJD members on its 17th foundation day, despite all out attempts to assure them of political stability.

Many in BJD are not professional touts. They are there, because they believe that a strong regional party can protect Orissa’s interest in a better way. They are quite embarrassed as their President’s close colleagues – MP and MLAs – are behind the bars under charges of criminal involvement in chit fund and land scams. That, needle of suspicion is sharply pointing at their President is no less embarrassing to them. They are so embarrassed that facing the people affected by chit fund cheating is becoming difficult. People are looking at them askance since the CBI has started investigation into chit fund felony, arresting inter alia some of the chit fund operators that were known to them as their President’s pampered persons. The way their Supreme leader Naveen Patnaik, despite being the chief minister with unprecedented strength in the House, run away from facing the Assembly, has embarrassed them to the core and all the BJD members – rank and file- feel too demoralized to sustain their confidence as ruling party members. So, they are really eager to get back the lost face. The BJD foundation day designed to be celebrated in a grand way was a great chance to stop the disillusionment spreading sharply amongst them. So, they were expecting that Naveen babu would make his position unambiguously clear in the matter of chit funds and land allocation scandals, so that the foundation day celebration clound be a profound reply to his critiques.

But, Naveen Patnaik is so short of explanation, that, he could not dare to open his lips in that matter. His assertion that the BJD’s electoral success is perturbing other parties for which they are trying to denigrate it, is rather indicative of fidgets he has developed after arrest of his colleagues and blue-eyed boys by CBI in chit fund scam and after unveiling of criminal favoritism in land and plots and flats allocations.

Naveen’s nervous speech on BJD foundation day has really confounded its members.

With Chief Minister at epicenter of suspicion, Chief Secretary should take all land allocation files to his custody immediately

Subhas Chandra Pattanayak

Allocation of housing plots and houses from discretionary quota were as per orders of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, his former cabinet colleague Samir De has disclosed. This is a serious disclosure.

Concerned files can say whether or not De’s claim is correct. Applications to affidavits, initial clerical notes to final orders of authorities are in the files.

Under Order No. 22188, dated 11.08.2014, Additional Chief Secretary Taradatt, heading a three-member Task Force comprising Commissioner-cum-Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Department as well as Special Secretary to Government in the Department of General Administration as members, had to work under the following Terms of Reference:

I. The scope of review by Task Force will cover the period to from 01.01.1995 31.07.2014 in Bhubaneswar and Cuftack urban areas in respect of (a) all cases of allotment of land/ house/ flat out of discretionary quota and (b) allotment of more than 1 unit of land/ house/ flat to members of the same family; and,
2. The Task Force should submit its findings and recommendations to Government within a period of four months. Simultaneously, the concerned agencies like BDA, CDA, OSHB and GA Department should take action on irregular allotments within this period.

The Terms of Reference is vitiated with serious mischiefs. One is: Making the Secretaries of both the departments where illegal allocations were complained of, members of the Task Force and another is authorizing in the ToR itself “the concerned agencies like BDA, CDA, OSHB and GA Department” to “take action on irregular allotments within this period” of inquiry “simultaneously”.

Such mischief strengthens the suspicion that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, as disclosed by his former ministerial colleague Samir De, is involved with the illegal allocations of housing parcels and readymade houses in prime locations to persons, some of whom have the potentiality to be used as shock absorbers in his vehicle of corruption and some others, whom he uses as his image builders and/or suppressors of news that might be carrying the capability of exposing his misdeeds.

The Task Force has already attracted criticism for not making any mention of many beneficiaries of the discretionary quota. Tallied with the reply of the concerned Minister Puspendra Singhdeo to a question in the Assembly on 11.07.2014, the TF report looks deficient. Some allege, the TF has deliberately omitted certain names to oblige undisclosed power that be; but the report strongly indicates that some of the relevant files were not made available to TF. Non-availability of files must be the reason of the TF’s inability to locate all the instances of criminal favoritism in land/house allocations. So, the TF has very rightly recommended for further in-depth investigation into the misuse of discretionary power by the Minister/Chief Minister. Either the CBI or Judicial Commission of Inquiry can conduct this in-depth investigation.

Had the Chief Minister been honest, he could have used his prerogative by this time to suspend all the illegal and dubious allocations located by TF and taking the involved properties into Government possession in State interest, should have asked the lease holders as to why the allocations would not be nullified. When the illegality in allocation has been located by the TF, the persons involved with this illegality are also known. Criminal prosecution that they deserve should have been initiated by this time.

But the Government is not moving this way, apparently because, besides influential executives – former and incumbent, and Judges of higher judiciary, and commanding commercial tycoons against whom the Government cannot go, the Chief Minister is also involved in this criminal offense.
When a very abysmally small number of news media persons are acting active sentinels of people in this matter, majority of newspapers and channels have started insinuating on credibility of the TF findings. Crabs are making the water muddy when admittedly the TF has not been helped with all required files to locate the full extent of illegal allocations.

But the good news media personnel and judiciary may not be hoodwinked and time may come, the judiciary may ask the CBI or appoint a judicial commission to investigate into the allocation scam.

It is imperative for the Judiciary to appoint such a Commission of Inquiry, because, there are Judges who have grabbed benefits from discretionary quota by swearing in false affidavits. All of these judges and their modus operandi need be brought to clear light and they need be prosecuted for punishment under criminal procedure if the judiciary is to save its own image. If it happens, the concerned files will be source of information.

Therefore, there is every reason to apprehend that concerned files may be destroyed or tampered with to save the scoundrels.

Unless the Chief Secretary, as chief of the Executive Government, immediately warrants every file of every allotment to his custody for safe-keeping thereof, the high-power investigation, which is now of immense imminence, may be defeated.

It is incumbent upon the Chief Secretary to immediately keep the files under lock and key under his direct control with such meticulousness that responsibility for illegal use of discretionary quota could be fixed and penal prosecution could succeed.

Chit Fund Felony: Artha Tattwa Facilitator Rewarded with Promotion and Posting of Choice

Subhas Chandra Pattanayak

Who is the Godfather of Smt. Gayatri Patnaik, now Deputy Registrar of Cooperative Societies-cum-MD, Orissa State Cooperative Handicrafts Corporation Ltd, is a must for the CBI to find out, as otherwise root of the felony may not be reached at.

Smt. Patnaik was Assistant Registrar of Cooperative Societies when all administrative norms and practices were contravened by her in registering the cooperative gimmick of Pradeep Sethy – the Artha Tattwa Multipurpose Co-op. Society Ltd on 3 November 2010, within 3 days of receipt of his application.

She has been rewarded with promotions and postings of her choice, keeping inconsequential the departmental proceeding instituted against her for serious offenses located through an inquiry.

Government of Orissa in the department of Cooperation had asked B.B.Mishra, DD (Statistics), Office of the Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Orissa, vide Letter No. 1026 dt.27 January 2011, to inquire into allegations leveled against her by leading members of Capital Coop. Housing Society Ltd.

The Inquiry Officer found that, Ms. Patnaik had captured the said Society’s CEO post by herself, “by utilizing one administrative order of the Govt. having no relevance to any authority under OCS Act and Rule 1962 and 1965 respectively”.

While holding this self-acquisition of the post of CEO absolutely illegal, the IO observed that “Smt Gayatri Patnaik should have waited for formal acceptance of her joining report by the management of the Cooperative Society before starting work including handling of cash and assets of the Society”.

Holding that, “A person acting as chief executive of the cooperative society without express permission of the management amounts to impersonation and her action can be very well termed as trespassing”, the IO declared, “all action done by Smt. Gayatri Patnaik are ultra vires in law unless until approved by the management of the Capital Housing Ltd”.

She was found to have transferred the Society’s funds to another organization “surreptitiously” allowing the chief executive thereof to operate it. This is “quite illegal and breach of trust” and “provision of the by-law (of the Society) has been seriously flouted by Smt. G. Patnaik in this case”, the IO has reported.

The report is full of adverse remarks on Smt. Patnaik. It was submitted on 2 November 2011.

It gathered dust in the Government for about one and half years. On 10 April 2013, vide order No. 3034/Coop, the Commissioner-cum-Secretary to the Government in the department of Cooperation, suspended her “with immediate effect” for “acts of omission and commissions during her incumbency as ARCS, Bhubaneswar”.

But the charges against her were suppressed and under signature of an Undersecretary, in the name of the Governor, which is a normal practice, she was “reinstated in Government service” on 23 September 2013 under Notification No. 7814/Coop.

On reinstatement, she was placed under the department of Hand-looms, Textiles and Handicrafts “for posting as DRCS (Industries) in the Directorate of Handicrafts”.

After she was thus rewarded with reinstatement and placed in a very comfortable post, as a matter of formality, she was served with a charge sheet on 30 October 2013. That charge sheet is not yet acted upon and she has been given extra lucrative assignment as MD of Orissa State Cooperative Handicrafts Corporation Ltd (Utkalika).

Had she not been in alliance with Pradeep Sethy in registering the Artha Tattwa Multipurpose Co-op. Society Ltd in total disregard to departmental norms in 2010, she would have faced prosecution for the serious offenses enumerated in the Inquiry Report and memorandum of charges the Government had asked her to meet.

Who is her godfather in the Government that has kept the disciplinary proceeding instituted against her inconsequential till date should be found out by CBI that has been investigating into Artha Tattwa’s chit fund felony.

It is worth mention that the General Secretary of All Orissa Primary Handicrafts Co-op. Societies Presidents and Artisans Association, in a letter to the Chief Minister written on 19 October 2014, has raised severe allegations against Smt. Gayatri Patnaik .

But, there is no action on the same as yet.

The mystery of CM’s silence on the Association’s letter is intriguing.

High Court in Apparent Error in Pratyusha Case, as Naveen Patnaik is not Asked to Explain Why He Found Her the Most Suitable

Subhas Chandra Pattanayak

The ruling BJD is de facto owned by Naveen Patnaik, whom all the members thereof know as their supreme master (‘the supremo’) and obey, exactly as my German Shepherd Dog knows me as its master and obeys my orders.

Patnaik decides who should contest from which constituency, provides funds for electioneering, projecting them as party candidates under the pretense of democratic practice.

He appoints his sycophants in any post available in Government, Public Sector and his party and even uses his personal factotum to take action against any of them as and when he wants.

He treats Orissa as his fee simple and squanders away Orissa’s natural resources like his father’s property in interest of any private – even foreign – industry and education mafia as he likes.

All his offenses are supported by his stooges, as they know, thereby is generated the election funds. Their participation in elections begin with nomination of candidates by him.

He or his authorized agent issues party tickets and inform the Returning Officer of this, basing on which, his party symbol is allotted to his candidates.

So, Naveen Patnaik is basically and entirely responsible for the nomination papers, which the BJD candidates file before the ROs.

The RO is guided by Naveen Patnaik as the issuer of party tickets pursuant to which election symbol of BJD gets allotted.

Laws prohibit a non-Indian to contest election.

So, the party boss that issues party tickets to a non-Indian is responsible for acceptance of a non-Indian by the RO/Election Commission as a legitimate candidate.

Kandhamal MP Ms. Pratyusha Rajeswari is alleged to be not of Indian nationality. She is alleged to be a lady of Nepal, staying in India as a widow of an Indian.

On this allegation, the High Court of Orissa has asked Pratyusha to explain as to why her election to Lok Sabha should not be nullified on nationality ground and has issued notices to the RO and the EC to explain their positions.

But Naveen Patnaik, the so-called supremo of BJD, being basically responsible for misguiding the RO/EC into accepting Pratyusha as a legitimate candidate to the extent of throwing the entire electoral process in to the feared fiasco, has not been asked by the HC to say as to why he set as his/his party’s candidate a non-Indian.

I think, this is an error that needs to be removed and Naveen Patnaik needs to be be asked by the High Court to explain as to why he shall not be responsible for crime against the country if his Kandhamal MP for whom he had actively campaigned along with his ministerial colleagues, is not of Indian Nationality.

If the allegation is found correct, Naveen is bound to be punished. But for this, it is essential that he be called for to explain as to why he had found Pratyusha the most suitable to be set up as his party candidate.

Editor's Picks

Oriya Language created Orissa and therefore Orissa must be ruled by Oriya Language

Subhas Chandra Pattanayak

Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik seems to have developed a wrong notion that governance of Orissa in Oriya depends upon his mercy. His press-note of December 17 and full page display advertisement in major broadsheets of today force us to arrive at this apprehension.

In his December 17 press note it was declared that he had held a meeting with the five members of the ministerial committee on that day for the purpose of “strictly implementing the Orissa Official Language Act, 1954 in official and non-official level” to facilitate which a website has been floated by the government. In the full page multi-color advertisement in broadsheet dailies today, this is intriguingly missing.

The advertisement is designed to tell the people that Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik has taken historical steps to save and develop Oriya language, and has enumerated the steps he has taken. This is blatant lie. Neither he nor his government has executed any single item claimed to be “historical” in the official advertisement. The entire advertisement is nothing but false propaganda. What a shame it is, that, the people of Orissa are taken for granted by their Chief Minister! Read more →

Navakalevara: Legends and reality

Subhas Chandra Pattanayak

Legends are the most misguiding mischief aimed at superimposing lies on reality so that indigenous people of an occupied land are kept too dazzled to see the dark face of the rulers and the class of exploiters can keep its victims subjugated to its authority, while forcing them to forget the heroic history of evolution of their own philosophy of life, their own splendid spiritual realizations, their own socio-economic uniqueness, their own ancient culture, their own valorous past, their own way of social integration and their own civilization.

We see this mischief galore in the context of Navakalevara of SriJagannatha.

So, here, we are to rip apart the legends and bring the reality of the Navakalevara to light, as thereby alone we can reach the lost uniqueness of the people of Orissa.

We will use Puri Sankaracharya’s self-proclaimed authority over Navakalevara to proceed with our purpose.

  Read more →

Samaja in Maze of Forgery: Two former Ministers of Orissa – Lingaraj Mishra & Radhanath Rath forged the WILL of Gopabandhu; Both benefitted till their death; SoPS continues to Loot

Subhas Chandra Pattanayak

The Oriya daily SAMAJA founded by late Utkalmani Pandit Gopabandhu Das, to which, out of their love and reverence for the great humanitarian leader, the people of Orissa had and have been giving their financial and moral support, is in a menacing maze of forgery and loot.

Sadly, two of Gopabandhu’s trusted men – Lingaraj Mishra and Radhanath Rath – who, because of being known so, had the opportunity of becoming cabinet ministers in Orissa, were the masterminds and/or makers of the forgery from which the paper is yet to be salvaged.

Both of them – Lingaraj and Radhanath – had partnered with each other in forging the last WILL of Gopabandhu to grab the Samaja, which being Gopabandhu’s paper was of superb credibility and the greatest political instrument of the day. They had performed this crime behind the screen of and in nexus with Servants of the People Society (SoPS), of which, while breathing his last, Gopabandhu was the Vice-President. Read more →