Naveen says meeting PM merely courtesy call and not political

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today said his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a only courtesy call and not a political one.
"During my visit to New Delhi,I met the Prime Minister and presented him a copy of the book 'The Tall Man Biju Patnaik'," Patnaik told reporters on his return to the state capital here.
The book is a pictorial biography of Biju Patnaik, the Odisha chief minister's father.
Notably, Patnaik's meeting with the Prime Minister on Wednesday last in the national capital without any agenda was a hot topic of discussion in the political circle here.

"Biju Janata Dal maintains equal distance with both the BJP and the Congress," Patnaik said while rejecting speculations about any possible alliance with either the BJP or the Congress.
Replying to a question on his meeting with Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly Narasingha Mishra in Delhi, Patnaik said, "He (Narasingha Mishra) just dropped in for only five minutes before the Hockey function to find out the details."

Ahead of the 2014 general elections, the then leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh of Congress had joined the BJD and later become a Rajya Sabha MP on BJD ticket.

Asked whether he would take a role in national politics, Patnaik said, "BJD is concentrating on its good work for Odisha."
During his visit to Delhi, Patnaik had attended a function of Hockey India yesterday for conducting the Hockey World Cup scheduled to be held here from November 28 to December 16 this year.
Referring to an allegation made by Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram on non-utilisation of funds by the state government, Patnaik said, "Every effort is made to utilise the funds provided by Centre.