Odisha Elections 2024: Can BJP Break BJD’s Hold Over Jajpur?

Jajpur: The politically sensitive Jajpur Lok Sabha constituency has remained a Biju Janata Dal (BJD) bastion since the regional party came into being. In its bid to break BJD’s supremacy, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has chalked out a poll strategy. BJD heavyweight and party’s organisational secretary Pranab Prakash Das has moved away from Jajpur as he is contesting the elections from Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat this time. While BJD has renominated sitting MP Sarmistha Sethi from the seat, BJP has fielded Rabindra Narayan Behera. Similarly, former MP Anchal Das is in the race as Congress candidate.

Sarmistha Vs Rabindra

While BJD has repeated Sarmistha, BJP has brought a new face and fielded Rabindra from Jajpur Lok Sabha seat. Sarmistha had defeated BJP’s Amiyakant Mallick by a margin of more than one lakh votes in 2019 elections. She is highlighting the various welfare and development programmes being implemented by the Naveen Patnaik-led government. Rabindra, who had joined BJP in 2019, has been closely associated with the party organisation, taking active part in different activities. He has also served as president of Odisha BJP’s Scheduled Caste Morcha. Speedy development of Jajpur is his main poll plank. Congress candidate Anchal Das had son the Lok Sabha elections in 1996 as Congress candidate.

Fight In Pranab Absence

BJD stalwart Pranab Prakash Das, who has been playing a key role in ensuring party’s victory in Jajpur, is away from the battlefield this time. Popularly known as Bobby, the ruling party leader has not been able to give adequate attention to Jajpur as he is contesting as MP candidate from Sambalpur. He is pitted against senior BJP leader and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. His mother Sandhyarani Das is in the fray as BJD nominee from Korei Assembly seat under Jajpur Parliamentary constituency. While polling was held in Sambalpur in the third round on May 25, Bobby has not been able to prepare a blueprint for ensuring BJD victory in Jajpur. Pranab had been contesting from Jajpur Assembly seat and this time the regional party has fielded Sujata Sahu, president of the Jajpur district Mission Shakti Federation. She also served as the chairperson of Dasarathapur block in the district from 2017 to 2022.

Pranab’s absence from electioneering, however, is likely to affect BJD’s prospects in Jajpur Lok Sabha polls.

Rebels To Upset Equations!

In 2019 elections, BJD has won all the seven Assembly seats under Jajpur Lok Sabha constituency. However, there is resentment among ruling party leaders over ticket distribution. While some leaders have quit the party after being denied ticket to contest the polls, many others in the cadre are still unhappy. Actor-turned-politician Akash Dasnayak resigned from BJD and joined BJP after he came to know that he would be denied party ticket. He is contesting as a BJP nominee from Korei. BJD has fielded actor Varsha Priyadarshini in Barchana Assembly seat, denying ticket to six-time MLA Amar Prasad Satpathy. Amar and his supporters are upset over the move, while other ticket aspirants like Rajnarayan and Janmejaya Lenka were also unhappy after Varsha was nominated from the seat. While the ruling party is making all out efforts to keep its flocks together, no one knows if unity will prevail. Signs of revolt have also surfaced in Bari and Dharmashala.

The BJP is also facing resentment among workers in some pockets of Jajpur.

Rebels may throw all configurations haywire in Jajpur this time.

BJP Onslaught In BJD Fort

BJP is leaving no stone unturned in its effort to capture Jajpur. Central leaders have been undertaking whirlwind tours of Jajpur and conducting marathon campaign to garner support for party candidates. BJP national president J P Nadda has campaigned in Barchana to bolster the poll prospects of party candidates. Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Dharmendra Pradhan are also set to hit the campaign trail in Jajpur. On the other hand, BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik also visited the constituency as part of efforts to save the BJD fort. He highlighted BJD’s poll promises like free electricity and development programmes being implemented by the state government.

Rise In BJP Vote Share

Though BJD won the Lok Sabha polls in Jajpur in 2019, the BJP improved its vote share by 25 per cent. The saffron party had put up an impressive fight in Assembly segments like Binjharpur, Bari, Korei and Sukinda. BJD had won Barchana Assembly seat by a slender margin of 1,458 votes in last elections. Buoyed by its good show in 2019, the saffron party is making all out efforts to register its victory in Jajpur Parliamentary seat.

With Congress battling for survival, BJP and BJD are locked in an intense fight in Jajpur.