Without taking names, the Union minister warned that if anyone tried to damage his reputation, he had the strength to “cut off their hands and throw them away”. (File Photo)Union Tribal Affairs Minister and senior BJP leader Jual Oram on Friday stirred controversy by alleging a conspiracy within the party “to defame him and oust him” from the Union cabinet.Oram, who represents the Sundargarh parliamentary constituency, also issued a stern warning to those he accused of tarnishing his image.“Some people are spending money and plotting conspiracies to defame me by spreading a smear campaign against me. They believe that if I am dropped from the Union cabinet, it will create an opportunity for them,” Oramtold reporters at the party office, indicating ‘leaders who joined BJP from other parties.’Without taking names, the Union minister warned that if anyone tried to damage his reputation, he had the strength to “cut off their hands and throw them away”.Oram, one of the key figures of the Odisha BJP party since its inception in the state, said he had conveyed the matter to BJP’s general secretary (organisation) Manas Mohanty. “If the matter is not resolved at the state level and justice isn’t done, I will also flag it before thecentral leadership,” he said.Claiming that he had given his blood and sweat for the party, Oram alleged leaders who joined the BJP from other parties were attempting to destabilise him. “I am satisfied with whatever position, responsibility and respect the party has accorded me over the years but I condemn such attempts,”he added.The senior leader, who previously announced he would not contest any more direct elections, also reversed that stance, saying he would contest again. “I challenge those working against me to face me politically. You will see what will be their condition,” said the Union minister, adding he would “finish” those trying to “destabilise him”.Story continues below this adOram’s statement came a day after Rourkela police arrested Prakash Paswan, his representative, who had booked rooms at Circuit House for seven persons who were recently arrested with arms and ammunition by the police.Taking to social media, Oram recently advocated for a fair and impartial probe into the incident.The BJP’s Odisha unit has not reacted to Oram’s statement.A popular tribal face in the country, Oram is a six-time MP from Sundargarh who first won Lok Sabha polls in 1998. In his second term as an MP in 1999, Oram was assigned to head the tribal affairs ministry in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government. He was re-inducted into the cabinet in 2014, when Narendra Modi became prime minister, and once again in 2024.Story continues below this adBorn into a poor tribal family in Kendudihi village in Odisha’s Sundargarh district, Oram completed his diploma in electrical engineering in 1982 and was employed at Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited before entering politics. Oram was elected to the state assembly in 1989 before being elected as an MP.Since he began contesting the general election in 1998, he has lost the Sundargarh seat only once — in 2009 to former Odisha chief minister and Congress candidate Hemananda Biswal.Sujit Bisoyi is a Special Correspondent with the Indian Express and covers Odisha. His interests are in politics, policy and people’s stories. He tweets at @bisoyisujit87 ... Read More