The BJP suffered a major setback on Thursday with two of its political heavyweights, former Union minister Dilip Ray and senior leader Bijay Mahapatra, resigning from the party.

The two national executive members had distanced themselves from the party for the last two years now as their repeated efforts to draw attention of PM Narendra Modi and central BJP leaders Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Nitin Gadkari and others towards several issues concerning the state and the unfulfilled promises made to people of Odisha had failed to evoke a response.

“The list of betrayal with the people of Odisha is long,” they have reportedly said in their joint resignation letter. According to sources, the letter will be released on Friday.

“The party never took a call, no free and frank consultation or review was held on major issues like the Mahanadi water dispute, unkept promise of a second bridge over river Brahmani, super-specialty hospital at Rourkela and lakhs of jobs to Odia youth as promised during the inauguration of the Oil Refinery at Paradip etc,” they said.

The two leaders reportedly mentioned in their letter that the list was “too long” and they would not like to burden the party chief .

They have also pointed out how the party suffered a humiliating defeat in the Bijepur assembly bypoll and all by-elections at the panchayat level despite frequent visits and tours of Amit Shah. The party lost panchayats in home segments of tall leaders of the state, said sources who were in the know of contents of the resignation letter.

Formally, the letter is to be released tomorrow as Ray would first hand over his resignation as MLA to the Speaker of the Assembly, said the sources.

It is learnt that both the leaders are yet to decide on their future course of action, though it is well known that both the Congress and the BJD are keen to rope them in given their stature and clout in several constituencies of the state.

The BJP could not hold on to them or use them because a few felt they would dominate and be a threat to each one’s prospects of becoming the undisputed leader of the party in the state.

Significantly, Ray and Mahapatra have been maintaining a dignified silence on individual leaders in the party and have referred only to issues.

The sources said Ray was acceptable to the BJD but Mahapatra might find it difficult to enter the ruling party given the reservations of CM Naveen Patnaik.

The Congress is also working overtime to woo Ray and Mahapatra as it feels both could sway the voters of Sundergarh district and coastal Odisha, respectively.