Ending rumours about writer Gita Mehta being sent to Rajya Sabha by BJD from Odisha, her brother Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today said she is not interested in politics.
“My sister is not interested in any political positioning, not in the Rajya Sabha nor any other place,” Patnaik told reporters as the media was agog with the speculation that Mehta will be sent to the Rajya Sabha.
The rumour mill worked overtime when BJD’s Rajya Sabnha MP Bishnu Charan Das, elected barely nine months ago, resigned from the post after being made the deputy chairman of the state Planning Board and also convenor of the party’s Dalit Cell.
Patnaik chose to give the clarification on his elder sister’s stand, particularly after a group of senior leaders of the party welcomed her (Gita’s) entry into the politics.
Senior party MP from Bhubaneswar Prasanna Patasani described Mehta as “a great lady of wisdom”. “Odisha will immensely benefit from her knowledge if she goes to Rajya Sabha,” he said, even though BJD’s senior leader and spokesman S.N. Patro in a statement two days ago had said the rumor on her joining politics was not true.
BJD spokesperson Pratap Kumar Jena and MLA Debashis Samantaray added, “She (Mehta) is a learned lady and litterateur of an international repute. If she comes to Odisha, it will be a boon for all of us.”
The rumor about Mehta, who is approching 80 years, picked up when BJD MP Baijayant Panda indicated her entry into Odisha politics in a newspaper article.
Without mentioning Mehta’s name, Panda in a message for the Chief Minister said “Your (Patnaik’s) father always stood against promoting family politics. We hope you (Naveen) would also uphold the same principle.”
