As the Biju Janata Dal did not join the opposition meeting in Patna, the Congress accused Odisha's ruling party of being "hand in glove" with the BJP.
The relationship between the two parties will "continue till the BJP is in power at the Centre", Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee media cell chief Ganeswar Behera said on Friday.
"For a long, we have been saying that the BJD is with the BJP and will continue to maintain the relationship. How could the BJD join the group which was opposed to the BJP," Behera told PTI.
Contrary to the claim of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the Congress leader said that the BJD has "never maintained distance from the BJP".
"Patnaik’s party is all along with Prime Minister Narendra Modi," he said.
Responding to the allegation, BJD spokesperson Lenin Mohanty said the party had "no plan to join any group or alliance".
"Our party president has already made it clear that the BJD will not join any group or alliance now. We are committed to the welfare of the 4.5 crore people of Odisha. We have the strength to serve the people.
"We do not need anybody’s help from outside as long as the people of Odisha continued to bless us," Mohanty told PTI.
He also said that the regional party has been maintaining equal distance from both the Congress-led UPA and the BJP-led NDA.
Mohanty said the BJD would continue to maintain the policy.
Notably, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar and his West Bengal counterpart Mamata Banerjee had met Patnaik in Bhubaneswar recently.
Meanwhile, as many as 17 opposition parties on Friday resolved to fight the 2024 Lok Sabha elections unitedly to defeat the BJP and work with flexibility by setting aside their differences. They will meet in Shimla next month to chalk out a joint strategy.
Thirty-two leaders of these parties participated in the meeting in Patna.
The meeting is viewed as a starting point for Opposition unity ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2024 to unitedly take on the BJP.
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