Sambalpur, May 22: Senior BJP leader and Union Minister Giriraj Singh on Wednesday came out all guns blazing at the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government accusing it of being controlled by a mafia.

While participating in a road show here to campaign for his cabinet colleague and BJP nominee Dharmendra Pradhan, Singh targeted CM Naveen Patnaik and his close aide VK Pandian.

"A mafia is running the Odisha govt and that mafia leader hails from outside," Singh said. When the Minister asked the gathering- what is the name of the mafia gang leader? People replied, "VK Pandian."

Singh also alleged that Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is being held captive by a coterie, and that he plans to appoint V K Pandian as the next CM.

The BJP leader said that Naveen Patnaik had previously said he would step down as CM once he turned 75.

"Naveen Babu said 20-25 years ago that he would retire at 75. Now he is 77 and planning to make Pandian the next CM. I urge the people of Odisha to vote for BJP to preserve Odia Asmita and ensure that a native takes charge of the state," Singh said.

Criticising the BJD government for halting Hanuman Jayanti celebrations in Sambalpur, Singh said, "If we can't celebrate Hanuman Jayanti here, where should we go? Pakistan, Bangladesh, or Malaysia?"

He promised that once the BJP government is established in Odisha, people will celebrate Hanuman Jayanti without fear.

The BJP leader also brought up the Ratna Bhandar issue and accused the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government of mismanaging the affairs of Puri's Jagannath Temple.

He urged people to vote for party’s Lok Sabha candidate Dharmendra Pradhan and candidates of all the Assembly segments.

Singh praised Pradhan as "Bikas Purush" and predicted that he would win the Sambalpur seat by over 1.5 lakh votes.

"Dharmendra Pradhan will win with lakhs of votes. We will win at least 18 seats in Odisha... We will send the sand and mineral mafia to jail...", he said.

In sambalpur, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is up against three-time MLA Pranab Prakash Das of the BJD and Nagendra Pradhan of Congress.

Polling for Sambalpur will be held on May 25.

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