Bhubaneswar: Sambit Patra, the BJP national spokesperson and party’s MP candidate for Puri, has released a report card on the development works undertaken by him between 2019 and 2024 in the parliamentary constituency from where he unsuccessfully contested the last elections.
Keen to enter the electoral fry again, Patra had been touring the constituency regularly since his defeat in 2019 by a close margin of less than 12,000 votes. He is reported to have nursed the seat more than sitting MP Pinaki Mishra, whom BJD replaced with former Mumbai Police Commissioner Arup Patnaik this time.
“PM Modi has made a big change in the politics of India since 2014, that change is the politics of report card. There will be no politics of nepotism, casteism or appeasement, if there is politics then it will be of your performance, you have to give your report card. In 2019, I contested elections from Puri, but I lost by a few votes. At that time, I promised that I will never leave Puri and remain with the people…,” Patra said.
While stating that he never shirked his responsibility towards people of his constituency, he added that the defeat was perhaps a test which Lord Jagannath had put him through.
In the report card, he has highlighted his contribution to spread of Jagannath and infrastructure growth in national highway expansion, railway and postal services, lighting facility at the mouth of Chilika lake, and extension of financial assistance under different schemes to farmers, weavers, fishermen and women self-help groups.
Notably, Aparajita Mohanty is only BJP MP from Odisha who has been presenting her report cards to the constituents every year.
