BJD president and former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday slammed BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, saying he needs the attention of a “mental doctor” for making “outrageous” remarks against freedom fighter and former Chief Minister Biju Patnaik.
Criticising Dubey’s remark, the BJD chief said, “I think the BJP MP needs a mental doctor’s attention for saying these outrageous things,” he told reporters outside the Assembly in Bhubaneswar.
This comes days after Dubey, on March 27, claimed that Biju Patnaik was a link between former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and the CIA during the 1960s war with China.
“I am surprised by the outrageous things Dubey said about Biju Babu. I do not think Nehru had set up an office next to his in Delhi, while Biju Babu was still the Chief Minister of Odisha, to carry out tactics against the Chinese,” Patnaik said.
Recalling old memories with his father, Naveen Patnaik said, “I was very young at the time, about 13 years old, and I remember how furious Biju Babu was about the Chinese attack and how much he did to repel it.”
Dubey’s statement triggered sharp reactions across Odisha, with supporters of Biju Patnaik criticising the BJP MP for dragging his name into the war episode.
Meanwhile, BJD MP Sasmit Patra resigned from a parliamentary committee headed by Dubey in protest. Other MPs, including Manas Mangaraj, Subhasish Khuntia, Muzibulla Khan, and Niranjan Bishi, also criticised Dubey, accusing him of “insulting the pride of Odisha.”
BJD leader Debi Prasad Mishra demanded an apology from the BJP MP for making such “insulting” remarks against a “patriot.”
