Nuapada Bypoll: Odisha CM's Aircraft Checked; BJD Cries Foul Over Naveen Patnaik's Flight Delay

Nuapada: Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi’s aircraft and helicopter underwent thorough inspections during his visit to Nuapada to lead BJP campaign for the upcoming Assembly by-election.

Sources said the inspections were conducted by teams from the flying squad and video surveillance unit during Majhi’s visit on Thursday to ensure compliance with election guidelines.

Officials said the inspections were part of routine pre-election monitoring, aiming to oversee the movement of political leaders during campaigning.

Similar checks were carried out on the aircraft of Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnudeo Sai, who also visited Nuapada for BJP’s election campaign.

The inspections follow Election Commission guidelines on monitoring candidate and leader movement during election campaigns, aiming to ensure compliance with election laws.

Meanwhile, BJD president and Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik’s flight to Nuapada was delayed by around 25 minutes on Friday due to traffic clearance issues, according to Bhubaneswar Airport Director Prasanna Pradhan.

The delay drew sharp reaction from BJD leaders, who alleged that the authorities intentionally delayed flight clearance to disrupt Naveen Patnaik’s scheduled roadshow and public meeting in Nuapada.

They further alleged that the flight from Bhubaneswar Airport was delayed by nearly 70 minutes. “The delay in granting flight clearance by airport authorities was intentional and aimed at disrupting Naveen Patnaik’s scheduled roadshow and public meeting in Nuapada,” they claimed.

However, Airport Director attributed the delay to the flight operator’s failure to submit the flight plan, which led to the unavailability of the Air Defence clearance number. The officials coordinated and got the number from Kolkata, resulting in a 25-minute delay, he said.

Following the delay, Naveen landed at the helipad in Khariar Road at around 12.30 pm to hold a road show, canvassing for party candidate Snehangini Chhuria.