Minister’s PA carries his shoes
Jual Oram had earlier slapped his assistant for being late
Senior BJP leader and Union tribal affairs minister Jual Oram is in news again, but for the wrong reasons.
A photograph of one of his staff carrying his shoes while the minister was on his way to attend a meeting in Odisha has raised eyebrows .
Mr Oram was here on Monday to attend a workers’ meeting where members from Koraput parliamentary constituency participated in it.
Prior to attending the meeting, the minister and other party leaders went to seek the blessing of Lord Shiva where he took his shoes off.
After paying obeisance at the temple, the minister didn’t wear his shoes and proceeded towards the meeting venue which is a 100 m from the temple.
While Mr Oram chose to walk barefoot, one of his personal assistants, identified as Niranjan Behera, picked up the former’s shoes and followed him till the ‘Kalyan Mandap’ — the meeting venue.
On reaching the venue, Behera gave the shoes to the minister and the minister put them on.
Senior leaders like Giridhar Gamang, Jayaram Pangi and Bhrugu Buxipatra were also present in the meeting.
Mr Oram was involved in a similar controversy earlier this year where he slapped one of his assistants, Siddharth Mohapatra, during the BJP party’s National Executive Meeting at the Janta Maidan in the Odisha’s capital earlier in mid April this year.
Mohapatra was reportedly ‘punished’ for not responding to the minister’s phone call on time.
The minister had refuted the allegations saying that, “Nothing of that sort had happened. Media was circulating wrong news. I haven’t slapped him, just pushed him.”