Congress sacks former Union minister Srikant Jena

Bhubaneswar: In a late night development on Saturday, All India Congress Committee (AICC) sacked former Union parliamentary affairs minister Srikant Jena and ex-MLA Krushna Chandra Sagaria from the party.

This was announced here on Sunday by the Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) disciplinary committee convener Ananta Sethi.

“The AICC dismissed former Union minister Srikant Jena and Krushna Chandra Sagaria from the party on disciplinary ground,” informed the OPCC convener Mr Sethi.

Both the leaders were dismissed from the primary membership of the party for their “anti-party” remarks in media and comments against the office-bearers of the party, said the OPCC convener.

Earlier in December 2018, Mr Jena had resigned from all the posts in the party challenging the OPCC president Niranjan Patnaik.

Similarly, Mr Sagaria had resigned from the post of MLA on November 6, 2018.

Recently, Jharsuguda MLA Naba Kishore Das gave a huge jolt to the state Congress unit after he quit the party this week.

Later, Sundergarh MLA Jogesh Singh resigned from the legislator post and primary membership of the Congress following the suspension from the party for “anti-party” activities.

Reacting to his expulsion, the former minister Srikant Jena said he was punished as he challenged the mining-scam tainted Niranjan Patnaik’s appointment as OPCC chief.

“I cannot imagine that the party of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Gopabandhu Das can have a state president with such dubious distinctions. Odisha Pra-desh Congress Committee chief Niranjan Patnaik has on record filed an affidavit in Odisha high co-urt (in a case dating back to 1985) that he used to gi-ve bribe to a mining offic-er for his mining busine-ss. In fact, the high court  indicted him as a bribe giver,” said Mr Jena.

Rahul Gandhi surrendered before the alliance between Congress, BJD and mining mafia.

“I will reach out to people and launch a campaign against illegal mining and corruption. I will expose how the Patnaik families have ruined Odisha through illegal mining in last 40 years. Rahul Gandhi is coming to Odisha on January 25 and will make a startling revelation following which he cannot show his face to people,” Mr Jena added.

The political party is going through a tough phase because of the intense anti-party activities by a section of top leaders.