A Cycle of Betrayal comes Full Circle
A Story of Narcissism, Deceit and Betrayal
Print, electronic and social media are abuzz with the news of the resignation of Lok Sabha MP (Kendrapara), Baijayant Panda from the Biju Janata Dal earlier this week. The news may have come as a surprise for many, but was a matter of time for those in the know of recent events in Odisha. Panda was suspended from the BJD, a party he claims to have founded, in January this year. The sequence of events that led to his suspension weave an intricate web of deceit, treachery even, that exemplify the narcissism of the real “Jay” Panda, the man behind the veil that is his hyperactive Twitter account.
While it remains undeniable that Panda has been a distinguished parliamentarian and has made the best of the opportunities provided to him by his mentors and his party, the ease with which he has shed his skin is shocking at the very least. Having failed in his quest to be appointed as the leader of the BJD in the Lok Sabha, he used the 2017 Panchayat election results as an opportunity to lash out at his party and its leadership, sounding a warning bell for this planned betrayal. The reasoning behind the halt in his progress within the party ranks had been the fact that his business interests and those of his family had emerged as defaulters of loans amounting to a staggering 2300 crore rupees.
The timing of Panda’s deceit becomes even more interesting when one realises that the editorials, social media posts and other anti-party activities begun a month before the BJP’s mega “executive meet”, with Bhubaneswar as its chosen venue. There have now emerged reports of a gala dinner having been hosted by his family at their home during the weekend of this meet. This, of course, shall be dismissed by Panda as an event organised by Jagi Mangat, his wife, who now holds the reigns of OTV, a news channel that has been infamous for its continuous and relentless critique of the BJD, while perhaps omitting most of the positives in the current term. This has been the standard excuse whenever Panda has been questioned on the lines of mixing politics with business. It is reprehensible to see however, that Panda took no time in garnering support online when protests erupted over industrial disputes at an IMFA plant recently. The lines between his media company, his family business and his political ambitions have always been a convenience for him — rigid when his integrity is questioned but obscured when they work in his favour.
The fact remains that the people of Odisha may not be as blind or forgiving as they have been in the past — be it with regards to ICCL and IMFA, or his anti-BJD activities while holding a party ticket or even his use of the Lord Jagannath’s name every time he has been in a tight corner. This is a new, rising Odisha and voters shall not be fooled by his Twitter shenanigans or other forms of shameless self-promotion on social media.
While his future remains uncertain, that he leans towards the party which is a homonym to his online presence (where he fashions himself as Baijayant Jay Panda) has been obvious. Perhaps, he imagines a brighter future for himself in a party that lacks any real leadership within Odisha, with most of the BJP’s leadership today comprising politicians who earned their fame during the alliance with the BJD in the past. The lessons that he can learn from the past lie in what these leaders have been facing precisely — a swift and humbling reality check followed by the eerie silence of political obscurity.
