Odisha Chief Minister and BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik today remained non-committal on supporting NDA in government formation at the Centre.
“No talks at all. We have not discussed anything. We have not thought of it yet. Let us wait till the results,” he said.
Patnaik’s comments come after speculation about talks between BJP and BJD for their possible support to NDA if it forms the government at the Centre.
BJD was a partner of NDA but parted ways just before the 2004 Lok Sabha polls. A senior BJD leader had yesterday indicated conditional support to NDA in government formation at the Centre.
“Keeping in view the opinion of the whole country and the state’s interest, there should be no problem in providing conditional support to NDA to form government at the Centre,” BJD’s chief whip Pravat Tripathy had said.
Senior BJD leader Jay Panda, however, said the matter needs to be discussed within the party and a call on this will be taken by the party supremo.
“On this issue, Pravat Tripathi has suggested that conditional support can be given but this is an issue which needs discussion inside the party and ultimately the party leaders and president Naveen Patnaik will take the final call,” Panda said.
Meanwhile, senior BJD leader Pinaki Mishra expressed confidence that his party will get more than ten seats in Parliament and also get a comfortable majority in the Assembly elections to form the government for the fourth term.
“We will get 16-17 seats in Parliament out of 21. BJP in Odisha will get maximum one or two. Congress will be wiped out. We will get more than 100-105 out of 147 in the Assembly and comfortably form a government for the fourth time under Naveen Patnaik’s leadership,” he said.
He, however, hoped that whichever government comes to power at the Centre, it will be “less hostile and discriminatory” towards Odisha.
“We are hopeful that whichever the new government is will be less hostile and discriminatory towards Odisha,” he said.
Training his guns at the Congress, Mishra said he Congress-led UPA government at the Centre had been very “hostile” towards the state.