Patnaik depends on an IAS officer, not accessible to BJD MLAs,

Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh Friday said Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik does not get the proper feedback on governance as he completely depends on an IAS officer and is not accessible to MLAs and MPs of his own party.

He ridiculed Patnaik for his party BJDs support the BJP government at the Centre and alleged that there is an understanding between Prme Minister Narendra Modi and the Odisha chief Minister.

Ever since Modi came to the power, Patnaik has been supporting all his policies and bills...In Delhi, the BJD has been supporting the BJP on all issues and changes its voice when it comes to politics in Odisha, Singh told reporters here.

On the BJD governments governance, Singh said I understand that Naveenji is totally dependent on an IAS officer and is not accessible to his own party MLAs and MPs also.

He alleged that the IAS officer alone gives feedback to Patnaik "in the morning as well as in the evening" and no one is accessible to the chief minister.

I was also the chief minister of a major state (Madhya Pradesh). Chief ministers get feedback from the MLAs and MPs. But that is not happening in Odisha. An IAS officer is the lone person who gives feedback to the chief minister, Singh said.

The Congress leader said that peoples representatives should be given importance in a democratic set up but BJD MPs too are helpless and have no access to Patnaik, who is also the BJD president.

AICC general secretary in-charge of Odisha, Jitendra Singh said The BJD and the BJP are two sides of a coin. They work in a manner that they suit each other. Therefore, there is no opposition in the Assembly to raise peoples issue.

He sought a clarification from the chief minister on the relationship between the BJD and the BJP.

BJD reacted immediately over Digvijay Singhs remark and said the regional party does not take his statement seriously.

In the past, he (Digvijay) is known to have been making loose remarks which have embarrassed his own party. We do not take his statements very seriously, said BJD spokesman and MP Sasmit Patra.