The Odisha Government also remained silent. Why? Out of fear of whom? Naveen Patnaik asked
| Photo Credit: ANI
The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) President and former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday (September 28, 2026) appealed its members of his party and other political parties not to allow the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act 2026 to be implemented in Odisha.
Leading a massive demonstration in front of the Odisha Legislative Assembly, Mr. Patnaik launched a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) at the Centre and the State for their alleged “indifferent” mindset to understand the gravity of financial implication of MMDR Act in the State.
“The MMDR Amendment Bill is not an ordinary Bill. It concerns the rights of the State. The people of Odisha are the rightful owners of Odisha’s mines and land. It is unfortunate that such an important Bill was passed in Parliament without any discussion. And why did our 20 BJP MPs remain silent? In whose interest?,” he asked.
“The Odisha Government also remained silent. Why? Out of fear of whom? I wrote to the Chief Minister seeking a special session of the Assembly. There was no response. I again wrote to the CM urging him to bring a resolution opposing the MMDR Amendment Act. But there was no response,” Mr. Patnaik maintained.
“This is a government that keeps saying “no” to everything. It is all talk and no action. Because of this Act, Odisha will suffer losses amounting to thousands of crores of rupees every year. Why is the government silent when it comes to Odisha’s interests?,” questioned Mr. Patnaik who is also the Leader of Opposition in Assembly.
Stating that no political party can ever be greater than this land, he said, “the chair of power may be here today and may go tomorrow. But if this land is betrayed, there will be condemnation forever. Gen Z will not forgive you. The people of Odisha will not forgive you.”
“I will fight for Odisha’s rights till my last breath. I appeal to everyone, and I appeal to all political parties, to join this struggle. Let us come together for this land and make a resolve that we will not allow the MMDR Amendment Act to be implemented in Odisha,” said BJD supremo.
Speaking on the occasion, Sujata Rout, former IAS officer inducted recently into BJD and wife of V.K. Pandian, close aide of Mr. Patnaik, said, “The revenue generated from the mineral sector could have funded irrigation, education, farmer welfare and infrastructure projects. We could have progressed Odisha by 10 years. The State would have been prosperous forever. By supporting the passage of the bill in the Parliament, the BJP MPs returned the fund that came knocking our doors.”
“The MMDR Act proved that the remote control of the State BJP lies with their central leadership. BJP leaders are lying that earnings from the mineral sector have increased due to them. The mining revenue has shot up from ₹5000 crore to ₹50,000 crore not because of the BJP government, but because of Naveen Patnaik. When the mining sector was opened to auction, only Odisha benefited out of this compared to other mineral-bearing States. It was because of strong leadership of Mr. Naveen Patnaik,” she said.
The BJD leaders have announced to expand the opposition to the MMDR Act to the district level and stop the transportation of minerals from mines. It is to be noted that INDIA Block leaders have called for another massive demonstration in Bhubaneswar on Tuesday (September 29).
Published – September 28, 2026 01:57 pm IST
