Odisha legislator quits BJD ahead of elections

Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA Sukanta Nayak on Friday resigned from the primary membership of the party, ahead of the Assembly elections in Odisha.

Nayak's resignation came a day after BJD's Nabarangpur MP Balabhadra Majhi quit the party on Thursday.

In a letter to BJD President and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Nayak, who represents Nilagiri constituency, attributed his decision to an alleged conspiracy hatched against him by the party's Balasore district chief.

"To add to my disadvantage, the mental torture meted out to me by the district BJD president is becoming unbearable day by day," the MLA said.

Nayak resigned after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Mahila Morcha state Vice President Sushama Biswal joined the BJD on March 11. Biswal had unsuccessfully contested against Nayak in 2014 elections.

Meanwhile, former Aska MLA Saroj Kumar Padhy and former member of Odisha Women Commission Tilottama Nayak also joined the BJP on Friday.

They joined the party in the presence of Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and BJP's state unit chief Basanta Kumar Panda at the party's state headquarters here.

--IANS

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