Biju Patnaik and Mohan Majhi

BHUBANESWAR: Odisha CM Mohan Majhi-led BJP govt changed the name of “Biju Patnaik Sports Award” to “Odisha Rajya Krida Samman,” dropping Biju’s name from a govt initiative for the first time after coming to office. Sports and youth affairs dept issued a notification to this effect Friday, reports Sandip Mishra.
The award instituted by Naveen Patnaik govt is the highest honour in the field of sports in the state.It was named after Biju Patnaik, the former Odisha CM and Naveen’s father. During BJD’s over two decades of rule in the state, most of the govt initiatives were named after Biju. The renaming row sparked a political war of words between BJP and BJD.