The members of the Youth Congress on Monday took out a protest march in Bhubaneswar, protesting the sharp rise in the prices of essential commodities.
Hundreds of Youth Congress workers, led by the Indian Youth Congress’ president Uday Bhanu Chib, gathered at Master Canteen Square and raised the issue of how the poor and the common people have been the victims of the price rise.
The agitators got into a scuffle with the police while they were proceeding to the official residence of chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi.
Addressing the youths, Chib said: “The youths of the nation have been betrayed by the Modi government. They have systematically destroyed the employment opportunities. They have broken the backbone of the younger generation. Over the years, they have given us nothing but unemployment and drug abuse. We do not want nasha (drugs), we want naukri (employment).”
He also cited how ₹20,000 crore worth drugs were seized from Adani Ports and no action was taken against any one. “Modi has assured to provide job opportunities for 2 crore youths per annum? Where are the jobs over the years?” asked.
Chib said that the power of the Constitution has been marginalised over the years. He also equated Mohan Charan Majhi government as the “puppet” of the Modi government. He said that the state government works as per the direction the Modi government in Delhi and has no plans for the development of Odisha.
The Youth Congress also said the attacks against Dalits, tribal and minorities have increased after the Majhi government assumed power in Odisha.
Odisha Youth Congress president, Ranjit Patra, said: “Our voices are being suppressed the ruling dispensation using the police force. Law and order has collapsed in the state. In the name of giving free power to people, the government has started exploiting people. If no steps are being taken to contain the price rise and to address the issue of growing unemployment, we will take the agitation to the state’s rural areas.”
Reacting to the protest of the Youth Congress, Odisha BJP Yuva Morcha president Abhilash Panda claimed that the Congress has lost its identity in the state as the central leadership has made the state unit defunct.
“The Congress doesn’t have any committee or executive in Odisha. So, to prove its presence in Odisha, the Youth Congress has organised this protest,” Panda said.
Additional reporting by PTI