Bhubaneswar: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders in Odisha are eagerly awaiting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the state on February 23. The PM is scheduled to address a public meeting in Sambalpur, and party leaders are keen to see if Modi will provide them with the much-needed direction to challenge the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) led by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
The BJP has historically maintained a relatively soft stance towards the BJD, considering the regional party’s support in passing crucial bills in Rajya Sabha and getting NDA candidates elected to various constitutional positions. However, after the 2019 elections, the central leadership has not been vocal about their mission in Odisha.
In 2019, the BJP fell short of its target of winning 120 out of 147 assembly seats, securing only 23 seats. The lack of a cohesive effort by central and state leaders to identify issues and build a strong public opinion against the BJD government has been a challenge. The BJP is grappling with the dilemma of selecting specific issues to raise in the run-up to the polls.
In the previous elections, the BJP successfully raised concerns about chit fund and mining scams, gaining substantial support. While there were initial announcements to revisit the chit fund scam issue, the party has not shown further activities on this matter. Similarly, though the Leader of the Opposition in the Odisha Legislative Assembly, Jayanarayan Mishra, raised the mining scam issue, there hasn’t been significant support from state BJP leaders.
Party insiders suggest that if PM Modi provides the “marching order,” the BJP’s election machinery in Odisha will likely put up a strong effort to come to power in the state.
