Bhubaneswar, Sep 23 (IANS) The Opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) workers and leaders on Wednesday staged a massive protest and clashed with the police at Lower PMG in Bhubaneswar during the march towards the State Assembly demanding the resignation of School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond over printing blunders found in the school textbooks in the state.
Braving the rainfall triggered by the deep depression, senior party leaders and legislators also joined the protest jointly organised by Biju Yuva Janata Dal (BYJD), the youth wing of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), and the party’s students’ wing, Biju Chhatra Janata Dal (BCJD), on Wednesday.
BJD workers and leaders clashed with security forces at Lower PMG while marching towards the Odisha Assembly after police tried to stop them from proceeding further.
The cops later detained around 40 to 50 Congress leaders and workers to bring the situation under control.
The youth and student leaders of the BJD have been holding protest at the Lower PMG for the last two days demanding the resignation of Minister Gond.
Speaking to media persons, Deputy Leader of Opposition Prasanna Acharya said, “We are demanding the resignation of the concerned Minister to take moral responsibility. It is an utter failure on the part of the state government. They are jeopardising the future of lakhs of boys and girls of the state. It is unforgivable.”
“The agitation will continue unless the state government takes moral responsibility and the Minister resigns. The students and young people of the state will continue their agitation, and we will support them,” he added.
Senior BJD leader and party MLA Niranjan Pujari backed the party’s youth and student wings protest over the printing errors in school textbooks.
Speaking on the issue, Pujari said education was crucial for the state’s overall development and expressed concern over the condition of the education sector.
He added that the BJD was raising the issue in the State Assembly while its youth and student wings were protesting on the streets.
“We are agitating over this issue, and our youth and students are also agitating on the streets. We are going to support them,” he said.
Notably, BJD MLAs have also been staging protests inside the Odisha Assembly for the past two days during the ongoing Monsoon session.
–IANS
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