Kalpataru show of strength to remove land scam taint

KENDRAPADA: Pushed to a corner following a spate of charges against them, BJD's Rajya Sabha (RS) member Kalpataru Das and his MLA son Pranab Balabantray engaged in a show of strength on their home turf, Jaraka in Jajpur district, on Saturday, the concluding day the ruling party's fortnight-long statewide Jana Sampark padayatra.
The father-son duo mobilized an impressive crowd ostensibly to remove the scam taint and resurrect their political fortunes.
Kalpataru, who was regarded as chief minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik's most trusted lieutenant during the assembly and general elections in April, has landed in trouble following allegations of land grab, involvement in chit fund scam and allotment of multiple houses/plots in favour of Pranab and his family members in the past few months. Consequently, Naveen removed him from the post of BJD leader in the RS. Kalpataru was also missing in action during the recent Kandhamal bypoll.
Dharmashala legislator Pranab, in turn, was interrogated by the CBI in connection with the AT Group scam and faced allegations of land grab at Ghangapatna, on the outskirts of Bhubaneswar. Recently, the Orissa high court issued notice to Kalpataru's wife, Pratima, in connection with land scam involving the Gokarneswar Trust, of which she is the chairperson, in Dharmasala block of Jajpur.
Besides Kalpataru and Pranab, food supplies minister Sanjay Dasburma, energy minister Pranab Prakash Das, Jajpur MP Rita Tarei, Binjharpur MLA Pramila Mallick and Korei MLA Akash Dasnayak addressed the thousands-strong gathering, majority of whom were women.
Kalpataru, in his address, attacked his opponents, saying, "Some unscrupulous people conspired to besmirch my clean image. But they failed to damage my reputation. The conspirators will be exposed soon." Dasburma said the state government had brought 40 lakh women under self-help group-fold to make them self-reliant.
The meeting was significant not only because Kalpataru and Pranab are attempting to re-establish their supremacy in Jajpur politics, but also due to its timing. It came around a month after BJD expelled Sukinda MLA Pritiranjan Ghadai's father and party heavyweight Prafulla Chandra Ghadai for launching a scathing attack on Naveen. The Das and Ghadai are said to be leading two factions of the BJD in the district.