Women’s safety has become a joke in Odisha: Kheda

Senior Congress leader Pawan Kheda on Friday claimed that women’s safety in Odisha has become a joke. He alleged that there is no end to the rise in crimes against women in the state during the previous Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and the current Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government. Kheda and state Congress president Bhakta Charan Das, at a press conference here, targeted the BJP government for not announcing a house committee to probe the rise in crimes against women in the state. Congress MLAs had created a ruckus in the Assembly in the last few days demanding the formation of a house committee to probe the alleged rise in crime against women in the state after the BJP came to power nine months ago. The Assembly Speaker suspended all 14 MLAs of the party for seven days in two phases on March 25 and 26. Kheda alleged that Congress MLAs were suspended from the Assembly for raising the issue of women’s safety while the state’s main opposition party BJD remained silent. He said, “This is because when women went missing from the state during the BJD rule, even the BJP people were silent. Now the BJD is silent on this issue, while the Congress is fighting alone for the safety of women in Odisha.” Targeting the BJP government at the Center, Kheda said, “Women safety has become a big joke in Odisha, as thousands of women and girls have been missing for years, while the government claims to promote ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ (Central scheme).