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Bhubaneswar (Orissa): Former CPI state secretary and three-time party MLA Nityananda Pradhan resigned from the party on Thursday. He sent his resignation to party's national general secretary AB Bardhan.
He is expected to join BJD and likely to contest for Aska Parliamentary constituency in Ganjam district in the coming Lok Sabha polls.
Pradhan, however, said he had not yet decided his future course of action after resignation. Pradhan has a 40 years' political career in left politics in Orissa. He is still a major leader of farmers and sugar cane growers in Ganjam district.
He alleged that during his tenure as State head of the CPI he had initiated action to recover assets of the party, which had been taken over by some party leaders due to which he was victimized. He also added that he was disillusioned by activities of left parties at Central level, which was making it hard for the state level leaders to face their supporters.
CPI State secretary Dibakar Nayak in a press note said that Pradhan had left the party to join some capitalist political party. Nayak said he was not taking part in any party activity for the last few months for which he was served a show cause notice on Tuesday. "He was neither physically nor mentally part of the CPI since last few months," Nayak said.
The recent act by the CPI leader was part of the strategy of BJD chief Naveen Patnaik to weaken CPI's organisation in Aska parliamentary constituency in his home district, Ganjam. The BJD has targeted the 'Govind Pradhan' family, which was considered a foundation stone of communist movement in Ganjam district.
Pradhan's daughter Latika Pradhan has already joined the BJD. She was once the CPI chairperson of the Shergarh block. Mr Pradhan's nephew, Samir Pradhan, a prominent CPI leader and former Zilla Parishad member, has also left the party to join BJD. His niece Renubala Pradhan is BJD Rajya Sabha member.
