Bhubaneswar: Veteran leader Raghunath Mohanty formally joined the BJP on Tuesday, just two days after resigning from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD).
Mohanty was welcomed into the saffron party by senior party leaders, including national vice-president Baijayant Panda and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan at the BJP State Party office here.
Mohanty is a five-time MLA of Basta constituency. He was reportedly unhappy over the apathetic attitude of the BJD leadership towards senior leaders. Mohanty had also remarked that the BJD had diverted from the ideals of Biju Babu on the basis of which it was formed.
Before leaving the party, Mohanty had met party president Naveen Patnaik on March 30 and submitted his resignation as chairman of the Odisha Lift Irrigation Corporation (OLIC).
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