Bhubaneswar: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will address Vijay Sankalp rallies in Bhawanipatna and Rayagada on Wednesday as a part BJP’s campaign blitzkrieg in Odisha with elections less than a week away.
He is scheduled to arrive at the police ground in Bhawanipatna around noon and address a mega rally at Lal Bahadur Shastri stadium. He will then attend a public meeting at ISCR ground in Rayagada.
This will be his second visit to Odisha within 2 months. Rajnath had visited Nabarangpur and attended workers’ conferences in Nabarangpur and Berhampur to review the preparedness of the party for the upcoming polls in February.
Chief minister of Chhattisgarh Vishnu Deo Sai will also arrive in the state on May 8 on a two-day visit. He will address public meetings at three places in Koraput during the day and attend as many meeting in Nabarangpur on May 9.
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The BJP has lined up all its top guns in an attempt to breach the BJD fort and further push its government formation narrative for Odia asmita and development of the state, ahead of the first round elections on May 13 when Berhampur, Nabarangpur, Koraput and Kalahandi will go for polling.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national president J P Nadda, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar have already campaigned for the party here and all of them have been unsparing in their criticism of Naveen Patnaik-led BJD regime. Modi’s announcement of June 10 as the date of formation of BJP government in Odisha and his invitation to the people of the state to be part of the oath taking ceremony in Berhampur and Nabarangpur on May 6 was seen as a clear strategy to unnerve the ruling party, which has been in power for the last 24 years.
Also Read: Odisha Elections 2024: BJD Posts Naveen Patnaik’s Swearing-In Invites After BJP’s Expiry Jab
While the PM is also scheduled to hold a roadshow in Bhubaneswar on May 10 and possibly address a rally in Balangir the following day, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari, Assam Chief Minister Hemant Biswa Sharma, will be in Odisha on May 9 to campaign for the party in Puri, and Malkangiri, Chitrakonda and Khallikote respectively.
Furthermore, Hema Malini, whom the party has enlisted as one of its star campaigners, is expected to join the campaign trail in Berhampur.
