Mohan Charan Majhi Photo | Express
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The BJP government’s decision to observe Panchayati Raj Divas on April 24—and not on March 5—has set off a political wave in Odisha. For over three decades, former chief minister Biju Patnaik’s birthday on March 5 was commemorated in the state for the leader’s contribution to local self-governance. As chief minister, Patnaik had brought in the panchayati raj system and provided one-third reservation for women—a decision hailed as path-breaking. On the other hand, April 24 was formally declared National Panchayati Raj Divas in 2010 by the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, marking the 73rd Constitutional Amendment that empowered states to establish the three-tier governance structure.
BJP’s propensity to change the names of government schemes and places is not new—it’s a feature of its political strategy. After coming to power in the state last June, the Mohan Charan Majhi government tweaked or renamed dozens of schemes floated by the previous BJD regime, prompting leader of opposition Naveen Patnaik to call it a “name-changer” government. But moving Panchayati Raj Divas has snowballed into a bigger controversy. The BJD—which owes its identity to the legendary leader—has taken it as a frontal attack. It has called the move an attempt to erase Biju Patnaik’s legacy, taking it to the streets and staging a walkout in the assembly. The regional party found support from the Congress on this.
The BJP, however, had clearly done its homework. A day after the announcement, Majhi invited Naveen as a guest at a government function celebrating Biju Patnaik’s birth anniversary. Here, Majhi launched a broadside against the BJD and claimed that the BJP government is fulfilling Biju Patnaik’s dream of ushering industrialisation and development in the state. While it’s clear that the BJP is trying to chip away at BJD’s political edifice built over the last 24 years and arrogate to itself some of Biju Patnaik’s cachet, the Panchayati Raj Divas shift is an assertion of sorts. For most its 10 months in office, the BJP government has battled the perception that it has not been able to emerge from the previous regime’s shadows. This is the Mohan Charan Majhi government’s big move to break the BJD’s shackles in the state’s administrative affairs and political memory.
