Bhubaneswar: Former Odisha Chief Minister and nine-term Lok Sabha MP from tribal-dominated Koraput seat, Giridhar Gamang along with his son Shishir, resigned from the BJP on Wednesday, alleging that he faced humiliation in the saffron party. Gamang joined the BJP in 2015 after quitting Congress. The ex-CM will most likely join Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao's Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). However, the date of joining the BRS is yet to be decided.
"I can tolerate insult, but not humiliation. Moreover, I was overlooked in the party," Gamang told reporters here, adding that he was quitting the party with a heavy heart. The veteran tribal leader, however, thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for their support. Sishir alleged that his father was not given adequate importance in the state unit of the BJP.
In a letter to BJP national president JP Nadda, Gamang wrote that he decided to quit the party as he was unable to discharge his political, social, and moral duties towards the people of Odisha during his tenure at BJP. Meanwhile, Shishir also resigned from the primary membership of the party stating he was unable to do much for the welfare of the tribal community and the youth while in the BJP. Incidentally, both Giridhar and his son Shishir had abstained from the BJP state executive committee meeting organized in the capital city here on Sunday.
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Reacting to the development, BJP state president Samir Mohanty said, "He (Gamang) is a respected politician. He was never humiliated at the party. He was a member of the state executive as well as the highest core committee of the party. He had extensively campaigned for four days in the Padampur bypoll. However, he is free to choose any party of his choice." Mohanty further added that Gamang's resignation will not affect the party's electoral prospects.
Gamang and his son met Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on January 13. He may lead the party in Odisha in the 2024 elections as its state president, sources said. Koraput constituency is the only Lok Sabha seat in the state that was won by Congress in the 2019 elections. Of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in the state, the BJD had won 12 and the BJP eight. Congress nominee Saptagiri Ulaka had won the seat by a margin of 13,613 votes over her nearest rival Kausalya Hikaka of the BJD, while BJP candidate Jayram Pangi had finished third.
The BRS is focusing on southern Odisha including Koraput as the BJP has failed to elevate itself to the second position despite emerging as the principal opposition party in the state. In Koraput, the fight is between Congress and BJD and not BJP versus BJD like the rest of the state, a local journalist said. Of the seven assembly seats comprising the Koraput Lok Sabha seat, five are currently held by the BJD, and one each by Congress and Independent MLAs. With Gamang's help, the BRS wants to take the place of Congress in Koraput, a local political analyst said.
