Bhubaneswar: BJD president Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday criticised the BJP government in Odisha over rising prices of essential commodities, alleging that people across sections of society were suffering and the future of ‘Gen Z’ was bleak.
Addressing a gathering during the BJD’s Jan Sampark Padayatra in Bhubaneswar, the Leader of the Opposition in the state Assembly accused the government of incompetence and alleged that it was prioritising the growth of its own party over the development of Odisha.
“When the BJD’s sole agenda was the development of Odisha, the present ‘double-engine’ government’s primary objective is the development of its own party,” Patnaik said.
Targeting the government led by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, the five-time chief minister alleged that farmers, women, the elderly, the poor and the middle class were suffering under the present dispensation.
“The future of Gen Z is bleak,” he said.
Patnaik alleged that rising prices of essential commodities were causing widespread distress, while the state government remained indifferent to the problems faced by the people.
“The Odisha government ranks number one in the entire country when it comes to incompetence,” he asserted.
He urged BJD workers to stand with the people and expose what he described as the “real face” of the state government.
Patnaik joined the party’s mass outreach programme for the third time. The Jan Sampark Padayatra began across Odisha on Gandhi Jayanti on October 2 and is scheduled to continue until November 2.
During his previous participation in the programme on October 9, Patnaik had accused the Majhi government of failing to protect the state’s interests, particularly in connection with the passage of the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2026, in Parliament.
He had claimed that Odisha emerged as a model state for rapid development during the BJD’s tenure from 2000 to 2024, but alleged that the BJP government had tarnished its image.
“The name we earned over 24 years has been spoiled by the BJP government in just two and a half years,” he had said.
The BJD has opposed the new mining law, claiming that it would deprive the state of Rs 1 lakh crore in revenue from levies on mine owners. The party has demanded the repeal of the legislation and organised a rally in Bhubaneswar during the monsoon session of the state Assembly.
Apart from the mining law, BJD leaders have raised concerns over alleged large-scale errors in school textbooks, the deletion of more than 27 lakh eligible voters from electoral rolls during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), and law-and-order issues, senior party vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra said.
