Bhubaneswar: “This is an ideological battle, not a matter of personal relationships,” Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) President Bhakta Charan Das asserted on Wednesday while confirming his telephonic conversation with former Union Minister Dilip Ray over the Rajya Sabha elections.
Speaking to reporters, Das said that the conversation centered on Ray’s surprise decision to contest as an independent for one of the four vacant Rajya Sabha seats from Odisha. Ray, a veteran politician, hotelier, and former two-time Rajya Sabha member, queered the pitch in Odisha by announcing his independent bid on Tuesday, with the ruling BJP immediately extending its support. Odisha BJP president Manmohan Samal declared the party’s backing, describing it as an in-principle decision, while Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi expressed confidence in Ray’s victory.
Though Das described Ray as a “good friend”, he emphasised that personal ties hold no sway in this election. “I had mentioned to him last month the possibility of a joint candidate of Congress and BJD. He had then indicated he would reconsider only if the BJP made him its ‘number one’ choice, but that did not materialise,” the OPCC chief said.
Das added that he had made it clear to the former MP that any last-hour request for Congress support would be inappropriate and unlikely to be entertained. “There is no room for personal relationships here,” he said, while strongly batting for the common candidate fielded by the BJD and supported by Congress — Dr. Datteswar Hota, a renowned urologist, former principal of SCB Medical College, and the first vice-chancellor of Odisha Health University.
Das asserted that Hota would secure all 14 votes from Congress MLAs and one from the CPI(M), urging all party legislators to avoid any cross-voting. “Horse trading won’t work in this election,” he added.
The four seats in the Upper House from Odisha will fall vacant on April 2 following the completion of the tenure of Niranjan Bishi and Munna Khan of the BJD, and Sujeet Kumar and Mamata Mohanta of the BJP.
In the 147-member Odisha Legislative Assembly, the BJP has 79 MLAs and the support of three Independents, giving it an effective strength of 82 votes. The BJD’s tally stands at 48 following the suspension of two of its legislators – Patkura MLA Arvind Mohapatra and Champua MLA Santan Mahakud – over alleged anti-party activities last month. The Congress has 14 MLAs, and the CPI(M) has one.
The BJP is comfortably positioned to win two seats for which it has fielded state unit president Manmohan Samal and Outgoing MP Sujeet Kumar. After securing those, it would have about 22 surplus votes, eight short of the threshold needed for a third seat on its own. The BJD, after electing one member (Santrupt Misra who has been named as the party’s official candidate), would be left with 19 surplus votes. The BJD has joined hands with the Congress and fielded Hota for the fourth seat, which is now set to witness a close contest with Ray’s entry into the race.
Earlier in the day, Ray, who is expected to file his nomination on March 5 with BJP MLAs as his proposers, visited the residence of veteran politician Bijoy Mohapatra and met Arvind, sparking fresh speculations in political circles. “I am a suspended MLA, so I still have links with the BJD. I will vote independently and take a decision on the day of elections,” the Patkura MLA later told the media.
March 5 is the last date for the filing of nominations for the elections scheduled for March 16.
