NABARANGPUR: Despite a leg injury, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik kept his date with Umerkote with just four days left for the bypoll. Adding political weightage to the high-voltage campaign by all the parties, Naveen played out the pro-poor card at two rallies at Umerkote and Raighar on Friday.“We are with the poor’’, he announced and reeled out schemes of his Government. Naveen minced no words in attacking the BJP and the Congress. They always overlooked the interests of the State while BJD has always stood by the people of tOdisha and fought for their interests, he asserted.Ridiculing the Central leaders of the two parties Naveen said, “They come and shed crocodile tears.” This, he said, is quite evident from the fact that though his party has been seeking special status for Odisha since 2000 the Centre has been overlooking it. The BJD supremo also took potshots at the Centre on corruption and informed about the steps taken by him to root out the menace in the State. “I am taking strong steps against corruption. My Government has confiscated properties of corrupt officials and utilised it for public welfare,” the Chief Minister informed. While people across the country are suffering due to price rise, the UPA Government at the Centre has failed to take adequate steps to control it. Naveen sought to drum home a pro-poor image of his government and listed a number of schemes and programmes implemented by his Government, including the rice at `2-a-kg. Naveen claimed that the economy of Odisha has improved during his tenure and the poverty rate declined. Touching upon the issue of BJD MLA Jagabandhu Majhi’s murder, the Chief Minister at a rally in Maoist-infested Raighar said nothing can be achieved by violence. “We want peace and peace can only bring development.” He called upon people to vote for the BJD candidate Subas Gond to help his government continue the development process in Umerkote. Elaborate security arrangements were made for his visit.
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