FILE PIC

By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, February 3, 2019: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Sunday pooh-poohed BJP president Amit Shah for his criticism of the BJD ruled government in the state making it clear that the people of the State will decide which government will rule the State after 2019 elections.

“We shall await the results of the 2019 election. They (people) will decide which government will be thrown away and which government will stay,” Naveen told reporters in reaction to Shah’s claim that his party will form the government next in Odisha.

The BJD Supremo also lashed out at Shah for describing the state government as the “fused transformer”. “I understand he said that my government is a fused transformer. We will wait and see, who is the fused transformer and who is the transformer of Odisha,” Patnaik countered.

Earlier in the day, addressing BJP’s national scheduled tribe’s convention in Puri, Shah termed Naveen Patnaik-led government in Odisha a “burnt transformer”, and asked his party workers to uproot it throw it out.

Reacting sharply to Amit Shah’s comment that the BJD is the B team of Congress, the longest serving chief minister remarked: “We are an ‘A’ team on our own and equidistant from both the BJP and Congress.”

In a query to BJP’s ‘Mission-120’, Patnaik said: “To me, it sounds absolutely absurd.”

Patnaik also expressed confidence over his party’s performance in the next election. “I think the people will bless us as usual with a large number of seats.”