Newly-appointed Odisha In-Charge of the Congress Party, BK Hariprasad has created a flutter when he tried to blame the Naveen Patnaik government in Odisha, citing examples of Graham Staines murder case. Hariprasad, who knows little about Odisha’s geography and history, put his own party in the dock.

While addressing a Farmers’ Rally, Hariprsad lashed out at BJP leader and Gujarat CM Narendra Modi, accusing him of spreading communal hatred. He then accused Naveen Patnaik government of starting communal violence in Odisha by allowing Graham Staines and his two minor sons to be burnt alive. That stunned the Congress leaders and common people in the state.

Hariprasad did not know that Staines (58), his sons Philip (10) and Timothy (10) were burnt to death by a gang led by Dara Singh while they were sleeping inside the station wagon at Manoharpur village in Keonjhar district on January 22, 1999. Congress was in power during that incident. Assam Governor JB Patnaik was the Chief Minister at that time.

The BJD and others have taken potshot at the Congress and asked whether Hariprasad meant to say his party was responsible for the communal hatred in Odisha. The Congress leaders are embarrassed lot. Some of them have even complained against Hariprasad to Congress High Command Sonia Gandhi and Vice President Rahul Gandhi.