BJD Squabbling In Odisha: Will Naveen Patnaik Be The Crisis Manager ?

Bhubaneswar: Ever since its debacle in the last Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has been encountering internal squabbling in Odisha. Those who kept their mouth shut when the regional party was in power have now started raising questions. Several of them have mustered courage to seek explanations from the leadership too.

Political atmosphere has started warming up after senior leader and former Minister Amar Satpathy asked BJD president Naveen Patnaik to take responsibility for the party’s crushing defeat in the last elections.

Earlier, BJD MLA Souvic Biswal had spoken about groupism in the party, while Pradip Majhi raised questions over election management. Other leaders like Badrinarayan Patra and Avinash Samal also made critical remarks on poll management. The BJD appears to be passing through the most critical phase since its formation. Observers wonder whether Naveen Patnaik will do the job of managing the crisis.

Growing Resentment

Ever since it lost the simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, the BJD has been encountering growing resentment among leaders and workers. Party leaders are opening expressing their resentment. Senior leader Amar Satpathy has sought answer for the party’s poll debacle. Stating that the party had chosen Naveen Patnaik as leader, he said the people of the state voted for the party chief who took credit for electoral victories in the past. Similarly, Naveen should also take the responsibility for the defeat, said Satpathy. The regional party will move in the right direction if Naveen provides proper guidance after a thorough review of the political scenario, he said, adding that the party never chose V K Pandian as leader. As Naveen remained the undisputed leader, he should answer and explain everything. Satpathy’s remarks after his long silence have generated political heat in the state.

Who Is To Blame For Poll Debacle?

Naveen Patnaik has held a district-wise review to take stock of the situation and ascertain the reason behind BJD’s defeat at the hustings. During the review, senior leaders openly expressed unhappiness over election management. Pradip Majhi, a tribal heavyweight, was highly critical of alliance talks before the elections, internal rift and election management in the run up to the polls. Similarly, Badri Patra has stated that the party would have performed better if Naveen Patnaik had toured different parts of the state for electioneering. Avinash Samal, who was Dhenkanal Lok Sabha candidate, said the party suffered a lot due to over confidence and spoke of poor poll management.

Will Naveen Be The Crisis Manager?

The growing resentment that surfaced in the BJD after the electoral defeat can only be resolved by party supremo Naveen Patnaik as he is the only face in the regional party. He has been making constant efforts to keep the party united after the elections and holding district-wise review to hear from leaders from different parts of the state. Now, it is entirely up to him to decide the manner in which differences among party leader should be sorted out. He has to work out a proper damage control mechanism by taking senior leaders along. The party organisation needs to be strengthened.

Naveen, who always chose to keep himself away from crowd, is now seen more in public. He is moving out and interacting with people while visiting pandals during Ganesh Puja and Durga Puja. Naveen is also scheduled to embark upon visits to different districts from next month. Despite BJD’s defeat in the elections, Naveen continues to be a crowd puller as a large number of people are gathering wherever he is touring. All these amply show that his popularity remains intact.