The Odisha BJP has fired back legally against Sitanshu Dwivedi, the lawyer representing arrested BJD leader Raja Chakra, by filing a defamation suit in Balasore’s SDJM court on Friday.
The move comes after Dwivedi accused the BJP of being linked to a ₹1.3 crore transfer allegedly tied to a major transport scam.
BJP state chief Manmohan Samal denied the claims outright, calling them “false, malicious and politically motivated.”
“A month ago, Dwivedi accused me and my colleagues of forcing him to deposit ₹1.3 crore to the BJP leadership or face business consequences. I’ve taken legal action to let the truth prevail,” Samal told reporters.
Background: The Transport Scam
Raja Chakra, a politically influential BJD leader, was arrested in March by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) over a ₹1.32 crore transport scam involving fake transactions and alleged fund siphoning. His bail plea is still pending due to missing financial evidence.
The EOW has also seized 13 trucks allegedly linked to the scam and is widening its probe to examine connections between Chakra and former top officials — including a Keonjhar SP, district collector, and BJD’s Bobby Das.
BJP’s Legal Counterpunch
Dwivedi had alleged that the ₹1.3 crore was funneled into the BJP’s state account, with ₹53 lakh withdrawn by a former secretary of a mining agency. The BJP denied this, labeling it a “conspiracy” and challenging the credibility of the source.
“Our party’s finances are clean and audited. Anyone spreading lies will face legal consequences,” said Samal.
Former mining agency secretary Anjan Bej, named in the claims, also denied any involvement.
As the scam unfolds, political tensions between the BJD and BJP in Odisha have escalated sharply, with both legal and political fronts now deeply entangled.
