Naveen Patnaik (Odia: ନବୀନ ପଟ୍ଟନାୟକ) (; born 16 October 1946) is an Indian politician and writer, who served as the 14th Chief Minister of Odisha from 5 March 2000 to 12 June 2024. His 24-year reign is the second longest for a chief minister of any Indian state, after Pawan Kumar Chamling of Sikkim. He is the founder & first president of the Biju Janata Dal since 1997.
Biography
Patnaik was born on 16 October 1946 in an aristocratic Karan family to
Biju Patnaik, former Chief Minister of Odisha, and his wife, Gyan Devi.
He was educated at the Welham Boys' School in
Dehradun, The Lawrence School, Sanawar and later The Doon School.
At Doon, he was a classmate of
Sanjay Gandhi and three years junior to
Rajiv Gandhi, who later became prime minister of India.
After school, he went to the Kirori Mal College
of
Delhi University, and obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree.
Patnaik is a writer and had for the most part of his youth been away from both politics and Odisha, but after his father Biju Patnaik's demise, he entered politics in 1997 and the same year founded the Biju Janata Dal, named after Biju Patnaik, which won the state election with the BJP as its alliance and formed the government in which Patnaik became Chief Minister. His mild mannerism, "Stand against corruption" and "Pro-poor policies" have resulted in the development of a huge support base in Odisha, which has voted him to power in the last five consecutive terms. Like his father, he has managed to control the bureaucracy and transformed it into a machine for the development of the state.[ For Naveen, politics is a way to complete father's agenda . Indianexpress.com (10 May 1997). Retrieved 25 December 2010.] His spartan personal lifestyle and detachment from material possessions has been liked by the people of the state.
Political career
After the death of his father
Biju Patnaik, leader of the
Janata Dal,
he was elected as a member to the 11th
Lok Sabha in the by-election from
Asika Parliamentary Constituency in
Odisha, India.
He was a member of the Consultative Committee of Ministry of Steel & Mines, Member of Standing Committee on Commerce, and Member Library Committee of Parliament. In
December 1997, Naveen split from the Janata Dal and founded the Biju Janata Dal.
The new party was in alliance with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance performed well and Naveen Patnaik was selected the Union Minister for Mines in the cabinet of Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Elections 2000
In the 2000 Assembly election, BJD won the majority of seats in alliance with the BJP in the Odisha Assembly elections, Patnaik resigned from the Union cabinet and was sworn in as the Chief Minister of
Odisha.
Elections 2004
BJP led NDA lost the general elections in 2004, however, the coalition led by Naveen Patnaik emerged victorious in the state legislative elections and he continued as the Chief Minister. During this tenure, the friction between the ruling partners was getting more and more apparent, especially after the killing of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati
in the
Kandhamal district of
Odisha in 2007–2008 and also the active participation of Bajrang Dal in the riots that hit Kandhamal region.
Elections 2009
In the run-up to the polls for the
Lok Sabha and Legislative Assembly of Odisha elections in 2009, BJD walked out of the NDA after severing ties with the BJP and joined the nascent Third Front constituted mainly by the Left Front and few regional parties.
He did it after severely criticizing BJP's involvement in Kandhamal anti-Christian riots during 2008. The BJD won a resounding victory in both the
Vidhan Sabha (State Assembly) as well as the
Lok Sabha elections in 2009, winning 14 out of 21
Lok Sabha seats and 103 of the 147 assembly seats and was sworn in as the Chief Minister of
Odisha on 21 May 2009 for the third consecutive term.
Elections 2014
Patnaik won a huge victory in both the 2014 Indian general elections and the Legislative Assembly of Odisha elections in 2014. Patnaik's Biju Janata Dal secured 20 out of the 21
Lok Sabha seats of
Odisha and 117 of the 147 Odisha Vidhan Sabha seats.
Elections 2019
In spite of a strong BJP wave across the country, the Biju Janata Dal, under the leadership of Naveen Patnaik won as many as 112 seats out of 146 (polls for 1 was deferred) in the Legislative Assembly of Odisha and 12 out of 21
Lok Sabha seats in 2019 Indian general elections.
Elections 2024
The Biju Janata Dal was voted out of power in the 2024 Odisha Legislative Assembly election as the party managed to win 51 seats in Legislative Assembly of Odisha, thus ending Patnaik's 24-year rule in Odisha. Patnaik was himself defeated in Kantabanji constituency by 16,344 votes, marking his first electoral defeat. However, he did win the Hinjili seat with a reduced margin compared to previous elections. In the general elections as well, the BJD failed to win any of the seats it contested .
Electoral history
Odisha Legislative Assembly
|
|
| Hinjili | 66,459 | 46.85 | Sisir Mishra | 61,823 | 43.59 | | 4,636 | 3.26 |
|
| Hinjili | 94,065 | 66.32 | Pitambar Acharya | 33,905 | 23.91 | | 60,160 | 42.41 |
|
|
|
|
|
Lok Sabha
Criticisms
Language Proficiency
Patnaik spent most of his early days away from
Odisha, so he has problems with writing and speaking fluently in
Odia language.
He is the only chief minister of
India who does not speak fluently the regional language of his state and because of this, he has been facing severe criticism from his opponents. Presently, Patnaik has an adequate working knowledge of
Odia language and he possesses great mastery over
Hindi, French,
Punjabi language, and English. At rallies, he delivers
Odia language speeches written in
Roman alphabet.
Accolades
|
| Lifetime Achievement Award | 2022 | N. V. Ramana | Capital Foundation National Awards |
| Hero to Animals Award | 2020 | PETA | Odisha, India |
| CSI E-Ratna Award | 2020 | Computer Society of India | 53rd CSI Annual Convention |
| FIH President's Award | 2018 | International Hockey Federation | 46th FIH Congress |
| Ideal Chief Minister | 2018 | Pratibha Patil | 8th Indian Students' Parliament |
| Best Administrator in India | 2017 | Pranab Mukherjee | Outlook India Speak Out Awards 2017 |
| United Nations Award | 2013 | | Odisha State Secretariat |
Recognitions
-
The United Nations in 2013, felicitated Naveen by presenting a citation for his government's handling of Cyclone Phailin which hit Odisha in October 2013. The body also announced that the state's efforts would be highlighted as a model for disaster management programs globally. Naveen was also invited by the international body to attend the 2015 Third UN World Conference on Disaster Risk Reduction (WCDRR), which was held in Sendai, Japan from 14 to 18 March 2015.
-
The United Nations in 2019, complimented Naveen for his government's proposal of reserving 33% of seats for women in the National Parliament as well as in the state's Legislative Assembly.
Writings
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– Published in India, England and US
-
A Desert Kingdom: The People of Bikaner – Published in India, England and US
-
The Garden of Life: An Introduction to the Healing Plants of India – Published in India, England and US
See also
-
List of chief ministers of Odisha
-
List of longest-serving Indian chief ministers
-
List of prime ministers of India
-
List of presidents of India
External links
