BJD suspends former minister Prafulla Mallik amid internal party turmoil

Bhubaneswar:BJD on Friday suspended senior member and former minister Prafulla Mallik over “anti-party activities”, a day after he publicly voiced dissatisfaction over his exclusion from party affairs and threatened to resign unless internal reforms were undertaken.Mallik, a four-time former MLA from Kamakhyanagar in Dhenkanal district, had served in key ministerial roles under the Naveen Patnaik-led govt, including steel and mines and works. On Friday, he expressed dismay over being sidelined and warned that he would quit BJD if corrective measures were not taken.Mallik said he saw news regarding his suspension after he tendered his resignation from BJD on Friday, citing personal reasons.

“I resigned in the morning. Allegations of my indulgence in anti-party activities are baseless as I have already said the party is not functioning properly,” he said. The suspension order signed by party vice-president (headquarters) Pratap Jena was released to the media on Friday though the date mentioned in the letter is Thursday.The move comes amid a wave of resignations that has rattled the BJD leadership. Earlier this week, senior party members N Bhaskar Rao and Lalbihari Himirika — both prominent figures in south Odisha — resigned from the party in protest against the appointment of Jagannath Saraka as Rayagada district president. Rao, a former Rajya Sabha MP, and Himirika, a former minister, accused the party of ignoring grassroots leaders and announced the formation of a new social platform, the Biju Swabhiman Mancha, to uphold the legacy of Biju Patnaik.With Mallik’s suspension following closely on the heels of these high-profile exits, BJD faces mounting pressure to address internal dissent and organisational drift as it seeks to regroup after its electoral setbacks.