Odisha Remembers The Tall Man On His Birth Anniversary

Odisha Remembers The Tall Man On His Birth Anniversary

Former Odisha Chief Minister and statesman Biju Patnaik is a brand in himself who is adored and idolised by millions. A freedom fighter, pilot, industrialist, politician, and philanthropist he is a man of many talents, rolled into one. It’s difficult to pigeonhole a man like Biju Patnaik whose contribution to Odisha is immeasurable. On the 105th birth anniversary of the former Chief Minister, My City Links honours the legend for the contribution he made by lending his flying skills to freedom fighters and his unique political stance.

A man who speaks his own mind, and does his own bidding, Biju Patnaik was not a man who cared about what people thought as long as he knew he was not in the wrong. The Big Daddy of Indian Politics, he strived to glue together the fractious Janata Dal and pioneered modern Odisha. From giving some valuable piece of advice to a recalcitrant Mulayam Singh Yadav, to taking jabs at various political groupies, he was the angry young man of Odisha.

His sense of humour during the lowest of his times was also applauded by all. When thousands of irate striking employees went on a rampage inside the Orissa Secretariat in Bhubaneswar, destroying property and roughing up senior officials, he casually aimed pot-shots at the mob and said, “I told these stupid chaps, at least you should have learnt your cricket. You can’t even bowl properly.” This was classic Biju, the man who feared none.

A pulp hero in himself since his school days, he was “a terror, often caned for mischief.” At a tender age of 14, he set out to cycle with his friends from Cuttack to Peshawar. Addicted by his rebellious self, at 18, he dropped his B.Sc. degree to start training as a pilot at the Aeronautic Training Institute of India, Delhi Flying Club. During his training, he crashed six planes performing low flying stunts on Tiger Moths for the mere reason of “dazzling the girls” for which he was grounded for a year. That is our very own Biju Babu.

The Dabang of Indian politics, Biju mesmerised all, with his stature. Towering at six feet two inches and ramrod straight posture even after a bypass surgery and persistent asthma, his presence awed everyone. He was a true maverick with a passion for adventure, and a bravado, unmatchable to all in a country full of grovelling politicians.

With a fierce unmatchable attitude, Biju performed numerous soul-stirring feats in the Second World War, evacuating thousands from Rangoon despite being shot down twice. Labelled as a ‘dangerous criminal’, he was imprisoned for three years by the British for being an active member of the Quit India Movement 1942 and for collaborating and helping out underground  freedom fighters Jyaprakash Narayan, Aruna Asif Ali and Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia, even while in the British service. Later he was bailed out, but to the dismay of the Britishers, he flew a 25-seater Dakota for the legendary rescue mission to bail out Indonesian freedom fighters. And after Independence, the ace flier turned industrialist, with a private airline, and a steel and a textile plant. This was his charisma.

This way he flourished and created a niche for himself in the world of Air Force. But adventurous and strong-headed as he was, he chucked it all one day and joined politics to become the chief minister of Odisha in 1961. He was always a leader and never a follower. His life speaks for itself. A chequered life marked by wilfulness and pride, he resigned from his chief ministership within two years of joining office. His unorthodox ways led to a spate of corruption allegations which became the biggest setback of his career and resulted in losing all four seats that he had contested for. But Biju was not a man to keep still. Six months into this, he won Rajnagar by election. But troubles never ceased to hog him. He was largely cleared, being indicted merely for some administrative improprieties, in an inquiry commission set up by the Jana Congress-Swatantra Party coalition. His honeymoon with the Congress ended in 1969 sparking a controversy. When Indira Gandhi, whom Biju called ‘Indu’ – objected to his giving a Rajya Sabha ticket to his tribal minister T. Sangma, he disregarded her decision and quit the party, forming the Utkal Congress which merged with the Janata Party in 1977 after enjoying a stint of power in Orissa jointly with the Swatantra Party. During the Emergency, he joined hands with the socialists and was jailed.

The maverick in him was still alive, and he openly supported Sanjay Gandhi’s Maruti project, apt for a man who admires entrepreneurship. He returned as the Chief Minister in 1990. Despite all the good and bad times, he did not lose his identity and his stance was strong. Unlike other politicians, he did not shy away from speaking his mind out. Diplomacy was not his cup of tea. He created ripples in his party by demanding fiscal autonomy for his state and rejecting the Mandal Commission recommendations after the then Prime Minister, V.P. Singh tried to implement them. His whims and authoritarian ways made him one of a kind. His flamboyance and rebellious nature made him the Kalinga Sandha (The Bull of Odisha). The former Indonesian President, Sukarno, presented him with a 100-acre estate which was the seat of the Kalinga empire, which he returned, joking: “The King Of Kalinga doesn’t accept gifts from his subjects.”

He believed that he had lived his life to the fullest and had no regrets. Buddha (Old Man) as he was fondly called by his people was indeed a reformer and architect of Odisha. He was undoubtedly a great intellectual, a legislator and a political leader. He was conferred with the title, ‘bhoomiputra’. He worked tirelessly for India’s progress and pioneered the development of modern Odisha. He was a symbol of fierce courage and patriotism.