Bhubaneswar: In a significant political development, the Speaker of the Orissa Assembly, Sarat Kumar Kar, today (Apr 3, 2004) resigned from the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) alleging "betrayal" by the party leadership.

Kar, who had expressed shock and surprise over his exclusion from the list of party candidates to contest the Assembly elections recently, wrote a letter to the BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, accusing him of not keeping his "word of honour".

The Speaker, who is presently in New Delhi, sent the letter to the Chief Minister, copies of which were faxed to the media in Bhubaneshwar by his office.

In the letter, Kar claimed that the Chief Minister had not only addressed public meetings in his constituency Mahanga in his favour, but also assured party workers not to be in doubt on the Speaker's ticket.

"Can the honourable Speaker's and Chief Minister's tickets be in doubt?" Kar quoted Patnaik as having said to assure his supporters.

Sources close to the Speaker said he is likely to return to Bhubaneshwar tomorrow.

Kar said that when a large number of his supporters from Mahanga came to Bhubaneswar and "agitated peacefully" outside the Chief Minister's residence for two days, the latter asked them to wait till March 31.