Bhubaneswar, Feb 12 (PTI) BJD president Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday urged his party's MLAs to become the voice of the state's 4.5 crore people during the upcoming Assembly session.

During a BJD legislature party meeting ahead of the Budget session, Patnaik criticised the BJP government, accusing it of "incompetence" and "irresponsibility," without directly naming the ruling party.

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Patnaik emphasised that self-praise and blaming others is a sign of poor leadership and governance.

He directed BJD MLAs to raise issues concerning the people of the state in the House, particularly pointing out the government's alleged failure to protect the state's interests despite the "double engine" administration, which includes both the central and state BJP governments.

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Though the "double engine” government took charge of Odisha eight months ago, Patnaik alleged its vision and work do not reflect protection of Odisha and its people's interest.

Therefore, as a responsible opposition party, BJD will raise its strong voice in the Assembly to protect the interests of Odisha and its people, Patnaik added.

Taking to X, Patnaik said, "Biju Janata Dal will fight for the rights of the people of Odisha. I attended the legislature party meeting of @bjd_odisha before the budget session of the assembly. I advised everyone to make the voice of the people in the assembly. #BJDWithOdisha."

The meeting was attended by senior BJD leaders, including deputy leader Prasanna Acharya, Opposition chief whip Pramilla Mallik, and several other lawmakers.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)