Naveen Patnaik accuses Jual Oram of indulging in wishful thinking

Bhubaneswar, April 5 :  A day after Union Minister Jual Oram claimed that some BJD leaders are showing interest to join the BJP, Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday said Oram is indulging in "wishful thinking".

"I think he (Jual Oram) is indulging in wishful thinking," Patnaik told reporters here.

The Union Tribal Affairs Minister on Tuesday claimed that some present and former members of Parliament and assemblies of other parties, including ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), are in touch with the saffron party to join it following its victory in four states in recently concluded assembly polls.

With Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar advocating for a Bihar-like grand alliance at the national level to counter the BJP surge, the Odisha Chief Minister said, "I think general elections are too far away and it's too early to take any such decision."

Following a setback in the Panchayat polls, the Chief Minster has been meeting the local representatives of different districts in phases at the BJD state headquarters to strengthen the party base at the grassroots level.