Maheswar Mohanty, former Odisha Speaker, passes away

Bhubaneswar: Maheswar Mohanty, former Speaker of the Odisha assembly, passed away on Tuesday morning at a private hospital in Bhubaneswar. He was 67.

Mohanty was also minister in Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s cabinet for several terms.

Mohanty he was admitted to the private hospital after he was diagnosed with a mild brain stroke on 31 October.

Mohanty was a five-time Lawmaker from Puri Assembly Constituency. He was first elected as a legislator in 1995 on Janta Dal ticket. Later, he won four consecutive times as BJD nominee.

He started his political career as a Councilor of Puri Municipality. Mohanty held several portfolios in the Naveen Patnaik cabinet including Panchayati Raj, Revenue and Disaster Management, Law, Planning and Coordination, Tourism and Culture.

He also served as the Speaker of the Odisha Legislative Assembly from 2004 to 2008.

He was made a minister for the first time in 2012 and continued to be in the Naveen Patnaik cabinet till May 2019 before he lost that year’s elections to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

On February 21, 2014 when Shri Mohanty was the Minister Revenue & Disaster Management some miscreants had opened fire at him near Amala club in Puri.

He had sustained bullet injuries on his hand and shoulder and was treated in a private hospital here.