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BJD splits, Orissa speaker recognises both groups

The eleven-month-old Biju Janata Dal, led by Union Steel and Mines Minister Naveen Patnaik, today split into two distinct groups with Orissa Speaker Chintamani Dyan Samantra recognising the two warring groups of legislators in the state assembly.

Samantra, in his ruling announced in the house, said 13 BJD legislators, led by Prafulla Samal, who was earlier recognised as the leader of the opposition and the BJD Legislature Party, will be treated as the BJD-A (pro-Naveen Patnaik) group while 14 legislators, led by Ram Chandra Sethy, will be considered the BJD-B group in the house.

Samantra also withdrew the leader of the opposition status given to Samal.

Dissension surfaced in the BJD when Patnaik, in a bid to revamp the party, constituted a jumbo, 84-member state executive, replaced the Biju Yuva Janata Dal president, and announced the presidents of 30 district units.

UNI

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