Bhubaneswar: Senior BJD leader and party spokesperson Lekhasri Samantsinghar on Friday filed a police complaint against BJP MLA Santosh Khatua, accusing him of making derogatory and misogynistic remarks against her.
Accompanied by senior party colleagues, Samantsinghar visited the Mahila Police Station in Bhubaneswar, where she lodged a formal complaint against the Nilgiri MLA from Balasore district.
In her statement, Samantsinghar alleged that Khatua’s comments were not only personally demeaning but also insulting to all women in Odisha and India, including women political workers across party lines.
“He has stooped so low with his utterances that I find it difficult to even repeat them here,” she said in the complaint.
She also addressed the matter directly to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sharing a copy of her letter on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).
This is the fourth police complaint filed against Khatua since Thursday, with three others already lodged at the Nilgiri police station in connection with the same issue.
The controversy stems from an earlier political exchange between the two leaders. On Wednesday, Samantsinghar accused Khatua of being involved in ivory smuggling and publicly called him a “thief” and “dacoit.” Khatua, in response, made remarks that have now drawn widespread condemnation.
Defending his comments, the MLA said:
“How can she call me a thief and dacoit? I only responded to her words.”
However, BJD leaders, including Leader of the Opposition Naveen Patnaik, strongly condemned Khatua’s remarks. The party has alleged that the BJP is trying to divert attention from the elephant death case in which they claim Khatua is implicated.
Meanwhile, BJP spokesperson Anil Biswal defended the MLA, stating the BJD was politicizing the issue and using it as a tool to harass Khatua over unrelated matters.
