3 ministers rally behind Patnaik

Talks between the loyalists and rebels in the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) continued today to diffuse the crisis in the party even as ministers started closing ranks against the rebels in support of party chief Naveen Patnaik. Three of them — School and Mass Education Minister Surendra Nath Nayak, Works Minister Kalindi Behera and Minister of State for Welfare Balabhadra Majhi — had issued press statements during the past three days expressing their confidence in Patnaik.

Dissident leaders, however, held a meeting in the port town of Paradip to highlight the failure of Chief Minister Patnaik in getting started the proposed oil refinery project, whose bhoomi puja was done by Prime Minister Vajpayee.

Prominent dissident and leader of the BJD Parliamentary Party Prasanna Acharya, who did not attend the meeting, said a report will be prepared on the oil refinery issue that will be submitted to the Prime Minister. Alleging that there is a conspiracy to shift the project from the state, Acharya said the issue will be raised in Parliament.