BJD to finalise Rajya Sabha seats soon: Naveen

Bhubaneswar, Mar 4 (UNI) Orissa Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today said he would discuss all aspects with senior Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leaders before finalising the candidates for the March 26 Rajya Sabha elections.

Talking to mediapersons on his arrival from New Delhi, the BJD president said there was still time for Rajya Sabha nominations. The party, he said, would field two candidates, who would be selected after discussing the matter with senior party leaders.

Replying to a question on the preparedness of his party vis-a-vis the Congress for the coming Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, Mr Patnaik said, ''Let us see how events unfold. I think all of us should await the report from Delhi.'' On AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi's visit to the KBK area, the Chief Minister said, ''He (Mr Gandhi) will see for himself the requirement of the KBK area which we have been demanding over the years.'' On the allegation that Christians were being ostracised in Kandhamal district, the Chief Minister said his government had followed the laws of the country, adding that Retired Justice Basudeb Panigrahai, heading the judicial inquiry into the Kandhamal incident, was looking into it.

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