Ganjam gives sixth Speaker of Assembly in 76 years

Berhampur: With senior BJD leader, Bhanjanagar MLA and former minister Bikram Keshari Arukha becoming the Speaker of Odisha Legislative Assembly on Monday, Ganjam district will have a speaker for the sixth time during the last 76 years.

Arukha has been a legislator for the last 27 years. Earlier he was the Chief Whip and Parliamentary Affairs Minister. He resigned on June 5, 2022, after instructions from the BJD high command. "I am confident that I will perform my job successfully", he said.

The five leaders of Ganjam who were elected to this coveted post to manage the House include Lal Mohan Patnaik (from May 29, 1946 to March 6, 1952 of the second pre-independent Assembly), Lingaraj Panigrahi (from July 1, 1961 to March 18, 1967 of the Third Assembly), Somnath Rath (from June 12, 1980 to February 11, 1984 of the eighth Assembly), Chintamani Dyan Samantra (from February 16, 1996 to March 10, 2000 of the 11th Assembly) and Surjya Narayan Patro (from June 1, 2019 to June 5, 2022 of the 16th Assembly).

Patnaik, father of the renowned Odia singer Pranab Kishore Patnaik, was born in 1891 in an Odia zamindar family in Budharasing village of Srikakulam in the then Presidency of Madras. He completed high school from Berhampur and moved to Kolkata and Madras to complete his BA and BL He came back to Berhampur to practice law and joined Indian National Congress in 1921. Thereafter he plunged into the freedom struggle and the movement for formation of a separate Odisha province by merging the Odia-speaking tracts. He converted to Christianity during this period and became an active missionary in Berhampur and Cuttack.

The Odisha Assembly had one seat reserved for Christians during the pre-independence period. In the 1946 elections, he got elected from this reserved constituency to enter the Assembly. Because of his popularity, he was elected Speaker; he continued till 1952.

Panigrahi of Polsara was the private secretary to Anne Besant and the first secretary Madras Students Convention. He did legal practice at Aska, Berhampur and Cuttack. He was born on March 21, 1896. He joined the INC in 1915; attended the Round Table conference, England in 1934 for separate State. He was a Judge Odisha High Court in 1948, Chief Justice in 1954-56, Minister of Home, Law and Education from 1957-59.

Bhanjanagar was educated at Khallikote College, Berhampur, Ravenshaw College, Cuttack, and participated In the freedom movement as a student. He was Minister of State twice and Cabinet Minister twice, president, Ganjam DCC till 1980. He founded many high schools, colleges, co-operative and literary institutions, and was associated with many social and literary institutions. He was the recipient of 'Karvey Award' as State Health Minister standing first in family planning in the country.

Samantra, who represented Chikiti in 1980, 1985 and 1995, was considered a firebrand leader of Ganjam, became the Speaker from February 16, 1996 to March 10, 2000, after Kishore Chandra Patel (from March 22, 1995 to January 14, 1996) and resigned. He was the Deputy Speaker of the 11th Assembly from March 28, 1995 to February 12, 1996.

Patra was the Speaker from June 1, 2019 of the 16th Assembly. He resigned on June 5, 2022 due to ill-health.