By Sunil Jena, Editor-in-Chief | The Politics Odia
Bhubaneswar: After the release of the latest NCRB report, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi’s Political Advisor and BJP Spokesperson Manoj Mahapatra held a press conference where he strongly attacked the former BJD government, including Naveen Patnaik and V.K. Pandian.
Manoj stated that between 2021 and 2024, Odisha’s law and order situation had completely collapsed under the BJD regime. Referring to the NCRB data, he pointed out that Odisha witnessed a disturbing trend in human trafficking cases. Interestingly, more men (661) than women (644) were trafficked in 2023, and nearly 26.7% of the victims (348) were minors, including 181 girls. In comparison, 1,120 people (502 women) were trafficked in 2022, and 1,475 (735 women) in 2021.
The main reasons for trafficking included forced labour, sexual exploitation, domestic servitude, forced marriage, and petty crimes. Odisha also topped the list in rescues, with 1,246 trafficked victims being brought back in 2023 — including 649 men, 597 women, and 342 minors. However, in terms of the number of registered cases, Odisha ranked third (162), behind Maharashtra (388) and Telangana (336). During 2023, 298 people were arrested on human trafficking charges, 182 were charge-sheeted, while 22 were acquitted or discharged by the courts.
Taking a sharp dig at the previous regime, Manoj Mahapatra said that “under the BJD government, crime had spread like cancer in Odisha. Now that the BJP government has come, we have started giving chemotherapy. In the coming NCRB reports, you will see the clear improvement in law and order across the state.”
The statement has sparked political discussions across Odisha, as Manoj’s remarks not only defended the current government’s actions but also directly blamed the BJD leadership for years of administrative decay.
