Bhubaneswar, August 8, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Senior BJP leader and Sambalpur MP Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday hit back at BJD president and former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik over alleged personal remarks against him, saying he would continue to serve Odisha with the blessings of the people and Lord Jagannath.
Addressing a public programme in Redhakhol, Pradhan said he had served as a Union Minister for 12 years without bringing disrepute to Odisha. He asked whether he had ever done anything that should make people of the state “hang their heads in shame”.
Targeting Patnaik, who had earlier criticised him over the NEET question paper leak issue, Pradhan said the BJD chief was calling him a “badmas” and had encouraged younger party leaders to raise the slogan “Dharmendra Pradhan Go Back”.
“If they want to become big leaders by opposing me, let them. I am a servant of Sambalpur; even if you ask me to go back, I will come,” Pradhan said.
He maintained that he had never compromised the honour of Odisha and invoked the blessings of Lord Jagannath and Maa Samaleshwari.
“As long as I am alive, whether I do good work for Odisha or not, I will never cause any harm to the state’s honour,” he said.
Patnaik had earlier demanded Pradhan’s resignation over the NEET paper leak controversy and directed BJD MPs to raise the issue against the BJP government in Parliament. He had also cited Pradhan’s resignation from the Union Education Ministry as a precedent while seeking the resignation of Odisha’s Education Minister over errors in textbooks.
Reacting to Pradhan’s remarks, BJD leader Rohit Pujari said nobody was attempting to defame the BJP leader, alleging instead that Pradhan had brought disrepute upon himself.
Pujari also referred to the BJP’s alleged police action against students at Jantar Mantar and claimed that the deaths of 21 students linked to the paper leak controversy had brought disrepute to Pradhan.
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