Bhubaneswar: The speculation about an alliance between the BJP and the BJD before the simultaneous elections in Odisha further gained momentum as two prominent BJD leaders left for New Delhi in a special flight on Thursday evening.
According to sources, 5T chairman VK Pandian and ruling BJD’s organisational secretary Pranab Prakash Das left for the national capital to hold discussion on seat-sharing with the Central leaders of the BJP.
The possibility of pre-poll tie-up between BJP and BJD gained ground on Wednesday when the two parties held urgent meetings separately and their leaders dropped enough hints about it.
Following a three-hour-long meeting at Naveen Niwas in Bhubaneswar, party’s vice-president and MLA Debi Prasad Mishra told reporters that the BJD would “prioritise the greater interests of the people of Odisha”. He also acknowledged that there were discussions about a possible alliance with the BJP.
Senior BJP leader and former Union minister Jual Oram, who attended the party meeting in New Delhi, also hinted there were discussions about the alliance in the meeting. “Since the BJP is a national political party, the final decision lies with the central leadership. Whatever decision the central leadership takes, it will be binding for all,” he told reporters in Delhi.
But the two parties had not come to an understanding on seat-sharing with each sticking to their share. Keen on keeping its dominance and strength in the Odisha Assembly, the BJD is seeking to contest from 112 seats while offering the remaining 35 to BJP.
The BJP, in its turn, is pushing for 14 of 21 Lok Sabha seats in the state but the BJD is ready to concede only 10. Pandian and Das are in Delhi to hammer out a solution to the issue with the BJP leaders, the sources said.
The alliance is likely to be announced on March 8, exactly 15 years from the day BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik severed ties with the BJP ahead of the 2009 polls, they added.
Also Read: 2024 Election: All Eyes On BJD-BJP Seat-Sharing Pact Amid Alliance Talks In Odisha
