Senior BJD Leader and MP Bhartruhari Mahtab Quits Party 

Bhubaneswar: In a significant political development in Odisha ahead of 2024 general elections, Bhartruhari Mahtab, a senior leader of BJD and the MP from Cuttack, announced his resignation from the party on Friday. Speaking to the media this afternoon, Mahtab stated, “I have submitted my resignation to BJD President and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at 4 pm today.” Mahtab, who has served as MP for Cuttack six times and is one of the founding members of the BJD, cited a lack of sufficient opportunities to work freely within the party as his reason for leaving.

Mahtab, a respected figure in Parliament, was honored with the ‘Sansad Ratna’ award for four consecutive years from 2017 to 2020 for his exemplary performance in debates. Additionally, a special court in Cuttack recently leveled charges against Mahtab under IPC Section 353 for an incident involving the assault of a police officer on duty thirteen years ago.

In a related development, three incumbent BJD MLAs—Pradeep Panigrahi, Prashant Jagdev, and Arabinda Dhali—have defected to the BJP. Odisha is scheduled to conduct its Lok Sabha and Assembly elections concurrently over four phases on May 13, 20, 25, and June 1, with the results set to be announced along with the rest of the country on June 4.