BJD accuses BJP of erasing Mission Shakti legacy from Odisha website
Synopsis
Weeks after losing power in Odisha, the BJD has taken direct aim at the BJP government over changes to the Mission Shakti website — specifically the removal of former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik's photograph. The row cuts to a deeper question about who controls the narrative of governance legacy when power changes hands.
Key Takeaways
The BJD on 12 July accused the BJP government in Odisha of removing Naveen Patnaik's photograph and information from the Mission Shakti official website.
Senior BJD leaders including Pramila Mallik , Sulata Deo , Tukuni Sahu , and Lopamudra Buxipatra addressed a press conference at Sankha Bhawan, Bhubaneswar .
The BJD described the move as reflecting the government's 'insecurity' and 'inferiority complex', calling it a 'futile attempt' to erase history.
Mission Shakti was launched under the previous BJD regime and involved lakhs of women through Self-Help Groups (SHGs) across Odisha.
The BJP government in Odisha had not issued a formal response to the allegations at the time of reporting.
The Opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Sunday, 12 July accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Odisha of making a 'futile attempt' to erase the legacy of Mission Shakti — a flagship women's empowerment programme — by removing the photograph and information of former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik from the programme's official website. The allegation was made at a press conference held at Sankha Bhawan, the BJD's headquarters in Bhubaneswar.
What the BJD Alleged
Senior BJD women leaders, including Chief Whip in the Odisha Assembly Pramila Mallik, Rajya Sabha MP Sulata Deo, former Minister Tukuni Sahu, and former Odisha State Women's Commission chairperson Lopamudra Buxipatra, said the move reflected the state government's 'insecurity' and 'inferiority complex' rather than confidence in its own governance record.
The leaders argued that deleting Patnaik's photograph and details from the Mission Shakti portal amounted to rewriting history and disregarding the contribution of lakhs of women associated with the programme. 'A government that has the ability to create history preserves it, whereas a government that is incapable of creating history attempts to erase it,' the party stated.
Mission Shakti: A People's Movement, Says BJD
The BJD stressed that Mission Shakti was not a party initiative but a broad-based people's movement built through the collective efforts of women, Self-Help Groups (SHGs), and grassroots workers under Patnaik's leadership. The party maintained that every elected government is a constitutional institution, and its work forms part of the state's institutional history — not the property of any political party.
The leaders further contended that government departments and official platforms belong to the people of Odisha, not to whichever party holds power. Altering a website, they argued, cannot erase a programme that has enabled lakhs of women to achieve economic self-reliance, dignity, and social empowerment.
The Political Dimension
This comes amid a broader pattern of post-election repositioning in Odisha, where the BJP ended the BJD's 24-year run in power in the 2024 state assembly elections. The Mission Shakti website controversy is one of several flashpoints since the transition of power, with the BJD consistently framing such administrative changes as politically motivated attempts to diminish Patnaik's legacy.
'Today's attempt by the state government to erase the history of Mission Shakti raises a serious question: Why is the government so afraid? If a legacy continues to inspire the people even today, then removing a photograph only proves that the legacy of Naveen Patnaik remains powerful, relevant and immortal in the hearts and minds of the people,' the party asserted.
What Happens Next
The BJP government in Odisha has not issued a formal response to the allegations as of the time of this report. The controversy is likely to intensify political friction between the ruling BJP and the BJD, which remains the principal opposition in the state assembly. How the government addresses questions around institutional continuity and the stewardship of legacy programmes will be closely watched.
Point of View
So does the official memory of what came before. The BJD's outrage is understandable, but it also serves an electoral purpose — keeping Patnaik's legacy visible at a moment when the party is rebuilding in opposition. The harder question is one of institutional norms. Government websites and portals are public assets, and the selective removal of a predecessor's record — rather than adding context or updating information — sets a troubling precedent that future governments, of any stripe, could exploit. Odisha's voters deserve continuity of institutional memory, not a revolving door of curated histories.
NationPress
12 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Mission Shakti website controversy in Odisha?
The BJD has alleged that the BJP government in Odisha removed the photograph and information of former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik from the official Mission Shakti website. The opposition party called it a politically motivated attempt to erase the legacy of the flagship women's empowerment programme launched under the previous BJD administration.
What is Mission Shakti?
Mission Shakti is a flagship women's empowerment programme launched in Odisha under the BJD government led by Naveen Patnaik. It mobilised lakhs of women through Self-Help Groups (SHGs) at the grassroots level, aiming to promote economic self-reliance, dignity, and social empowerment.
Who spoke at the BJD press conference on 12 July?
Senior BJD women leaders including Chief Whip in the Odisha Assembly Pramila Mallik, Rajya Sabha MP Sulata Deo, former Minister Tukuni Sahu, and former Odisha State Women's Commission chairperson Lopamudra Buxipatra addressed the press conference at Sankha Bhawan in Bhubaneswar.
How has the BJP government in Odisha responded to the allegation?
As of the time of reporting, the BJP government in Odisha had not issued a formal public response to the BJD's allegations regarding the Mission Shakti website changes.
Why does this controversy matter politically?
The row reflects broader tensions following the BJP's victory in the 2024 Odisha assembly elections, which ended the BJD's 24-year rule. The BJD has framed administrative changes to legacy programmes as politically motivated, making the Mission Shakti dispute a focal point for the opposition's post-election narrative.
