Bhubaneswar, June 25 (IANS) In a significant political development, former IAS officer Sujata R. Karthikeyan, wife of Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik’s trusted aide and bureaucrat-turned-politician V.K. Pandian, formally joined the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Thursday, putting an end to months of speculation over her political entry.

She joined the BJD in the presence of party president Patnaik at a special programme held at Sankha Bhawan, the headquarters of the BJD in Bhubaneswar.

Welcoming Sujata into the party, the BJD supremo said, “I would like to welcome Sujata Rout to the Biju Janata Dal. She will be joining as a simple member of the party. You know, she had been an IAS officer, and she held several important positions in that office, including her last position, where she was looking after many women in our state.”

“I am sure that, as time passes and she gets used to her new position, she will learn to help people, particularly women,” he added.

While speaking to mediapersons, Patnaik also sent a strong message to party leaders who had reportedly expressed their displeasure, both overtly and covertly, over the rise of the Pandian couple within the regional party. The BJD president also tried to end the speculations in the media over his successor till the next elections.

“I would like to repeat again for the information of the media and all other people that, of course, I will be leading Biju Janata Dal in the next elections. I want to make that very clear,” said Patnaik.

Meanwhile, Sujata, after joining the BJD, said, “I got the opportunity to work for the people of Odisha under the leadership of Naveen Patnaik for a long 24 years. Today, after joining BJD, I again got the opportunity to serve Odisha under his leadership. With the blessings of Lord Jagannath, the party’s leadership and lakhs of workers, I will work with commitment and dedication.”

Sujata, a 2000-batch Odisha-cadre IAS officer, completed her Bachelor’s degree from Lady Shri Ram College and obtained a Master’s degree in International Politics from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

Among the various positions she held during her IAS career, Sujata was best known for leading Mission Shakti, Naveen Patnaik’s flagship women’s empowerment initiative. Under her stewardship, it grew into a 70-lakh-strong movement, with credit linkage to women’s groups rising from Rs 500 crore to Rs 15,000 crore in just seven years and interest-free loans of up to Rs 10 lakh boosting women-led enterprises across Odisha.

Notably, senior IAS officer Sujata R. Karthikeyan took voluntary retirement from service (VRS) in March last year, fuelling speculation over her likely entry into the BJD and her possible future role in the party.

–IANS

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