Bhubaneswar, Oct. 20 -- The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Tuesday accused the BJP-led Odisha government of betraying the state's territorial integrity through its alleged silence over Andhra Pradesh's move to hold panchayat elections in the disputed Kotia region.
The reaction came after former Chief Minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik wrote a letter highlighting the state government's silence on the Kotia issue. BJD media coordinator Lenin Mohanty launched a scathing attack on the BJP government, accusing it of failing to protect Odisha's territorial interests for political convenience.
Mohanty said the people of Kotia had received sustained attention through planned development initiatives during the more than two decades of BJD rule un...