BJD, meanwhile, accused its cross-voting MLAs of “betraying the party for money” and promised to take action soon after their action helped BJP-backed independent candidate Dilip Ray to sail through in a keenly contested seat.In a statement, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee disciplinary committee chairman Sujit Padhi said the trio had been suspended for “violating the party whip” and “voting for the BJP-backed candidate”.Congress legislature party leader Rama Chandra Kadam also submitted a petition to the Speaker seeking their disqualification under the anti-defection law. Alleging that the three indulged in cross-voting, Kadam said their action amounted to defection under the 10th Schedule of the Constitution.“Their conduct has not only undermined party discipline, but also goes against the democratic mandate under which they were elected,” Kadam wrote in the petition, urging the Speaker to take cognizance and initiate disqualification proceedings.In a separate letter, he also sought a change in their seating arrangement in the House.BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty said, “BJD leadership has zero tolerance for any any indiscipline and action will soon be taken against MLAs who betrayed the party and the people who elected them.”At a press conference at the BJD office, MLAs Pramila Mallik, Byomkesh Ray and Dhruba Charan Sahoo accused the eight legislators of voting “in exchange for large sums of money”. The MLAs denied the allegation.Mallik said those who cross-voted were now invoking Biju Patnaik’s legacy to escape public criticism. Sahoo said Rengali MLA Sudarshan Haripal had rejected an offer of Rs 15 crore to vote against the party and upheld the whip. He added that some of the MLAs now talking about Patnaik’s legacy were the same leaders who, in 1995, fielded independent candidates in over 30 seats, blocking Patnaik from returning as chief minister and helping the Congress.Sahoo said leaders who had faced chit fund and other corruption cases, and even spent time in jail, had now “betrayed” the party by cross-voting.Among the BJD MLAs who voted against the party, Devi Ranjan Tripathy and Souvic Biswal, said they had voted for Biju’s legacy. Tripathy argued that Ray was a close associate of Patnaik, while Biswal said his father, former MLA Pravat Biswal — expelled earlier by the BJD — had been insulted by the party.
