Several BJD leaders under CBI scanner: Soren

Several BJD leaders under CBI scanner

Baripada (Odisha), Dec 3: Dubbing the Odisha government as "anti-tribal," former Jharkhand Chief Minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren today alleged that several BJD leaders were under the scanner of CBI in the multi-crore chit fund scam.

"While Mayurbhanj MP and BJD leader Rama Chandra Hansda was in jail after being arrested by CBI in chit fund scam, another party MP from Balasore Rabindanath Jena had been under the scanner of the investigating agency," he said at JMM's Kranti Samabesh here.

Alleging that a number of BJD leaders were involved in the chit fund scam, Soren called upon people to vote JMM in the ensuing three tier panchayat elections. The former Jharkhand Chief Minister also criticised the Odisha govenrment's "anti-tribal policy" and said adivasis were being exploited by the present government as its "leader work for the benefit of mines owners."

The people are not getting any benefit from mining activities in Mayurbhanj district, he alleged. Soren also slammed Odisha's Sports and Youth Affairs minister Sudam Marndi, who joined BJD after quiting JMM ahead of the 2014 general elections. "Sudam has brought disgrace for the tribal community by giving his daughter married to a non-tribal family," he said

The JMM leader also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi for demonetisation. "Poor, tribal and villagers are victims of Modi's demonetisation scheme. The poor people living in forests are unable to exchange their old currency notes as they do not have accounts in banks," he said.

PTI