‘Naveen babu will no longer remain Odisha CM come June 4’: Amit Shah

Union Home Minister Amit Shah said on Tuesday that Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader Naveen Patnaik will become the “former” chief minister of Odisha when results are declared on June 4. He asserted that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will win 17 Lok Sabha seats and 75 assembly constituencies in Odisha. State elections and assembly polls are taking place simultaneously in Odisha. 

“Come June 4, and Naveen babu will no longer remain the chief minister, he will become the former CM... BJP is set to win 17 Lok Sabha seats and 75 assembly constituencies in Odisha,” said the BJP leader.

Amit Shah said that BJP will ensure that an Odia is appointed as the next chief minister. In an apparent reference to Patnaik’s close aide and BJD leader VK Pandian, Shah asked if a ‘Tamil babu’ should run the Odisha government. 

“When the entire country was celebrating ‘Ram Mahotsav’, the Odia CM Naveen babu and his Tamil babu, who is poised to become his political heir, tried to stop the Odia people. Tell me, can someone who tried to stop ‘Ram bhakts’ be brought back to power? Can a person from Tamil Nadu become the Chief Minister of Odisha? Narendra Modi will bring you an Odia-speaking, young CM, who is a resident of Odisha,” he said at a rally in Chandbali. 

He urged the voters to select the lotus symbol to pick a ‘jan sevak’ in order to rule the state. 
Amit Shah also stated that lakhs of youths were migrating from the state in search of work, and that if the BJP government comes to power, they will set up industries there.

“PM Modi's government is 'chawal wali sarkar', while Naveen Patnaik's government is 'jhole wali sarkar',” Shah added.

This comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a fresh interview with ANI, said that he has good relations with political leaders from various parties but cannot sacrifice the development of a state because of that. When asked about his relations with Patnaik, Modi said, “We have good relations with the leaders of all the political parties of India and in a democracy we do not have enmity. Now the question is whether I should maintain my relations or worry about the fate of Odisha. I chose to devote myself to the bright future of Odisha.”