I went to Padampur to stand with Barsha as BJP leaders launched personal attacks against her: CM Naveen

Bhubaneswar: I went to Padampur to stand with Barsha Singh Bariha like a father, brother and friend as some of the BJP leaders launched scathing personal attacks against her, said Odisha Chief Minister and BJD supremo Naveen Minister Naveen Patnaik.

While addressing the people following the win of the party candidate, Barsha, the BJD President said, “Some people are asking me why I went to Padampur by saying that I never campaigned during the panchayat election or any other by-polls. I want to say to them that some of the BJP leaders launched scathing personal attacks against a grief-stricken young woman and disrespected her, who had lost his father. I was pained by this.”

“Fighting, winning and losing are common in elections but launching personal attacks on a woman is very unfortunate. It is disrespectful to all women. This is why I went and stood with Barsha Singh Bariha like a father, brother and friend,” he said.

It is to be noted here that Barsha won the Padampur by-election by a margin of 42,679 votes. She polled 1,20,807 (58 per cent) votes, BJP candidate Pradeep Purohit managed 78,128 (37.51 per cent) votes, while Congress’ Satya Bhusan Sahu finished a distant third with only 3,594 (1.73 per cent) votes.