Bhubaneswar: A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA on Monday criticised former Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik for his remarks on a proposal to rename the 156-year-old Ravenshaw University, claiming that the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president does not understand Odia “asmita”.
Senior BJP MLA Jaynarayan Mishra alleged that BJD leaders were “trying to distort” Odisha’s history and the people of the state had given them a “befitting reply in the elections”.
Mishra’s remarks came after Patnaik, in the context of the controversy over the proposed renaming of Ravenshaw University in Cuttack, said some people were trying to “distort” history.
Responding to Patnaik’s social media post, the senior BJP MLA on Tuesday said, “The people of Odisha have understood what you did to Odia identity in the last 25 years and hence, they rejected your government… The previous government demolished monuments like Puri Math, ancient temples and Raghunandan Pustakalaya.”
He also claimed, “Your party (BJD) leaders have been trying to distort the history of Odisha. That is why the people of Odisha gave them a befitting reply…BJD president does not understand Odia identity.” The BJP MLA said the double-engine government is “committed to correcting history”.
Actually, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan had proposed to change the name of the university. There has been a heated debate between both BJP and BJD in the assembly regarding this proposal.