BHUBANESWAR: The BJD on Wednesday strongly protested the rejection of tableau representations sent by the State government for the 73rd Republic Day celebrations. Alleging that the rejection is deliberate, BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty said that the party will strongly oppose this at the appropriate forum.
Mohanty said that Odisha had sent five representations which include the Paika Bidroha- the 1817 War of Independence, life and times of Jayi Rajguru (Jayakrushna Rajguru Mohapatra) and Chakhi Khuntia, hockey infrastructure in Odisha, and the vast development that has taken place in the State in disaster management.
Mohanty said that Paika Bidroha made it to the third round before it was rejected by the selection panel. Raising questions over the selection process, Mohanty said the tableau sent by Odisha have been appreciated in the past and some have even won awards. But the rejection this year, that too in the third round, without citing any reason has hurt the sentiments of Odias worldwide, he added.
Alleging that there has been partiality in the selection process, Mohanty said that the Centre has been accepting Gujarat’s proposals continuously for the last five years. Odisha’s proposal has been rejected without sufficient grounds, he added.