New Delhi, May 26: Senior leader Debashish Samantaray met Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president Nitin Nabin on Tuesday shortly after joining the party.

During his meeting, he was felicitated by Nabin in the presence Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, party Odisha unit president Manmohan Samal, Union Ministers Dharmendra Pradhan adn Jaul Oram.

Samantray formally joined the saffron party at the party headquarters in New Delhi earlier today in the presence of BJP national secretary Arun Singh, party Odisha in-charge Vijaypal Singh Tomar and Odisha unit president Manmohan Samal and said he was inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "programmes and personality" and affirmed the committment to working for Odisha as a BJP member.

Samantaray, a senior leader and a long-time loyalist of BJD president and former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, resigned from the primary membership of the BJD as well as from his Rajya Sabha seat on Monday.

Samantaray, who was unhappy with the party leadership for the last several months, tendered his resignation in a letter to the BJD president. He also met Vice President and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha CP Radhakrishnan at New Delhi on Monday morning and tendered his resignation from the membership of the Rajya Sabha.

With this, the number of BJD MPs in the Rajya Sabha has come down to five.

Samantaray, in his resignation letter, wrote, “I have always dedicated myself to the interest of the party and have, over the years, worked for the party with utmost conviction and commitment. However, I feel that, of late, I have been systematically belittled in the party and that the party does not require my services. Therefore, I have taken this hard decision in the public interest and request you to accept my resignation.”