Odisha: BJP’s Majhi Govt on Name-Changing Drive in Bid to ‘Rewrite’ History

It is somewhere said that the victors write history and historians rewrite it. When that happens, interpretations vary but not the essence.

In a way, there is a notional drive by the present dispensation that India has achieved Independence after 2014, when the saffron brigade came to power after unseating the erstwhile United Progressive Alliance (UPA) rule.

“After that, many things changed, including efforts to change the history of India in way which is often beyond any comprehensive logic, be it culturally, socially or even politically. Changes were forced through a brute majoritarian approach, simply leaving the Opposition cry in the wilderness”, senior journalist Annamitra Sengupta told this writer.

Before focusing on India, let’s take a look at Odisha where things, too, underwent change under a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hand-picked leader like Mohan Charan Majhi as the its choice (or Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s choice) to lead the state after a hiatus of over 25 years Biju Janata Dal (BJD) rule under former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

“Not forgetting many things that went haywire under the BJD regime, it can also be said that the exhilaration on whose crest the BJP rode to power in Odisha, a started singeing with time, and now after 15 months of Majhi’s rule, an air of despair is all-pervasive in many ways in the state”, feel several political observers, such as Rabi Das, 

What is stark is that like his masters in Delhi, Majhi also deems changes or reforms with a similar hard-sell manner, ignoring consensus, they say.

Reforms Minus Human Face             

The consensus among economists, policymakers, and social thinkers is that reforms should indeed have a "human face". The phrase "reforms with a human face" emerged in the context of economic liberalisation in the 1990s to signify that while policy changes (like privatisation or deregulation) are necessary for growth, they must not ignore the social impact on vulnerable sections of society.

But, with the least amount of political erudition or exposure, Majhi kept biting more than he could chew in the various steps that he took in the past 15 months.  

A "human face" ensures social safety nets (like healthcare, education, and food security) are in place to protect marginalised groups during structural changes.

“Reforms that ignore human welfare often lead to social unrest and political instability, which can undermine the reforms themselves” notes Ritik Pramanik, a political analyst and commentator.

“And that was loudly heard and realised by several steps initiated by Majhi, who never realised that no reforms are worth their name if they fail to help address people’s ordeals let alone alleviate the crisis, if any”, he added.   

Majhi took oath as Odisha's first BJP Chief Minister on June 12, 2024, embarking on a tenure marked by significant governance challenges, intense political pressure. In 2025,  he faced a series of crises involving law and order, safety of women, and allegations of inaction.

His first 15 months, leading up to early 2026, have been marked by the following key ordeals and challenges:

The primary challenge to his administration has been a spike in crimes against women, leading to widespread outrage and opposition protests. 

In July 2025, a 22-year-old Fakir Mohan College student set herself on fire following alleged harassment and failure of college authorities to act on her complaint. This incident triggered massive protests by BJD and Congress, who accused the Majhi government of apathy, forcing the arrest of the principal and a professor.

Puri’s Ghastly Girl Burning Case: A 15-year-old girl in Puri was set on fire by three individuals in July 2025, which further exacerbated the law-and-order crisis for Majhi’s government.

Administrative & Safety Crises: Reports emerged in 2025 indicating that over 36,000 women and 8,400 children had gone missing in the state in the past four years, placing high pressure on his new administration to tackle the ongoing crisis.

Custodial Abuse Scandal (Sept 2024): Early in his tenure, an Army officer and his fiancée were involved in a disturbing case of custodial abuse at the Bharatpur police station, which garnered national attention and criticism of the law enforcement under his government as reported in The New Indian Express. 

Majhi has maintained a stance against corruption, with his government filing 71 cases and arresting 58 government officials, including senior Class I officers, within the first 100 days.

“It appears like the tip of an iceberg while looking at the mammoth political corruption and waywardness of the economy under the 15-month-old Majhi regime. A narrative is going on that Majhi has focused on direct public grievance hearings, which is just a regular mid-day diet for a select group of media houses who simply report what they are asked to”, commented Kameswar Rao, a senior journalist and analyst.                  

Despite these challenges, Majhi’s administration has claimed success, including the implementation of pre-election promises, such as increased minimum support price for paddy and the launch of new welfare initiatives. 

Odisha is seeing high poverty rates, particularly in rural areas, that fuel malnutrition, child stunting, and anaemia, especially among women and tribal children. 

A weak primary healthcare, shortage of medical staff, and poor infrastructure are leading to high mortality rates, while expensive, low-quality education persists. 

Casteism, gender inequality (domestic violence, patriarchal norms), and discrimination against marginalized groups (tribals, disabled) remain prevalent. 

Lack of local opportunities is forcing educated youth to migrate for work, creating brain drain and family disruption. 

Deforestation, land degradation, and pollution are affecting rural livelihoods, worsening poverty. 

Corruption is hindering public service delivery, and a lack of long-term vision is exacerbating issues, such as alcohol addiction and social apathy.

Developmental Imbalance

Significant gaps exist between developed and underdeveloped regions (like Western and Southern Odisha), with tribal areas suffering the most deprivation. 

These issues are interconnected, with poverty driving migration, poor health affecting education, and environmental issues impacting agriculture, all contributing to a cycle of underdevelopment, especially in vulnerable communities.

It is too recent to forget how Majhi rode roughshod on people’s sentiments by abrupt imposition of rules on vehicle pollution certificates by imposing a penalty of Rs. 10,000 on owners without the Pollution Free Certificate or refusing refuelling of vehicles.

The bid to fleece people of thousands of crores through an avoidable rule is now in the courts, but the damage is done.

Prior to that, Majhi tried to grab the limelight by trying to legislate a three-fold hike in the MLAs salaries of Odisha, the highest in the country (although the legislation still awaits Governor’s approval). For this, reportedly, Majhi was chided by his masters in Delhi.

Critics also notice that Chief Minister Majhi is on an “asmita” (prestige) drive by changing the colours of buildings and road side wall paintings to saffron hue and also making them garish in quality.

Of late, there is an administrative decision in the waiting to demolish a few key buildings, including parts of the State Secretariat (Lok Seva Bhavan) and few others, and rebuild them, spending thousands of crores of public mone, as is being done in Delhi.  

Plans are also afoot to rename many buildings of cultural and administrative importance as well as roads pander to the whims of the present dispensation in Odisha, toeing the line of their masters in Delhi.    

The writer is a senior freelance journalist based in Odisha, with over 40 years’ experience in the profession.