BJD on why it is opposing no-trust motion: ‘Naveen Patnaik doesn’t believe in needless quarrels with Centre’

BJD MP Pinaki Misra tells Lok Sabha that Manipur events heart-wrenching but a no-confidence motion was not required. “We were born out of the need to oppose… Congress. Therefore, it is not possible for BJD to support any motion brought by the Congress.”

Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MP Pinaki Misra on Tuesday said the Congress’s no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government was misplaced, adding that the events in Manipur were “heart-wrenching” but a no-trust motion was not required for that. Misra said the way forward for women’s empowerment was the Women’s Reservation Bill and that the Centre would be remiss if the 17th Lok Sabha did not clear it.

Participating in the debate on the no-confidence motion, the BJD MP said every party must provide constructive suggestions on what was possible and what could have been done. The BJD, which has 12 MPs in the Lower House, opposed the motion. Misra said his party leader and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik does not believe in “needlessly picking quarrels” with the Centre. Given the fiscal structure, it was impossible to survive by constantly bickering with the Union government, the BJD MP said, adding that it does not serve the people of the state. He added that “anti-Congressism” was the foundation of the BJD and it was not possible for his party “to support any motion brought on by the Congress”.

“The heart-rending scenes that we have seen with regard to the atrocities of women in Manipur are not new to us. This is seen everywhere in the world, where there is strife, where there is this kind of conflict, where there is sort of internecine warfare. We have seen this in sub-Saharan African nations, in Burundi, between the Hutus and the Tutsis, we’ve seen this in Rwanda. For instance, we’ve seen this in Bosnia Herzegovina, we have seen this in Serbia,” Misra said.