Odisha Elections: BJP Not Announcing More Candidates As Its Leaders Are Afraid Of Contesting; Says BJD

Bhubaneswar: Taking a dig at Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over delay in announcing candidates for all Assembly seats in Odisha, Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Sunday said the saffron party’s search for nominees seems to have become a never-ending process due to dearth of leaders.

Senior BJP leaders have been speaking since April 10 about the party set to release list of more candidates soon, but no nominee has so far been announced, BJD spokesperson Ipsita Sahoo said.

It seems BJP’s search for candidates for the upcoming elections is still in progress, she said in a post on X. “Though BJP inducted several people into the party, the new entrants are unwilling to contest fearing defeat after seeking the condition of the saffron party,” she claimed.

Those who joined BJP recently have already informed the saffron party leadership about their inability to face BJD candidates in the state, she claimed.

“We hope that BJP will be able to announce all its candidates before filing of nomination,” she added.

It may be noted here that BJP has already announced its candidates for all 21 Lok Sabha and 112 of the 147 Assembly seats in Odisha.

BJD, on its part, has also announced its candidates for all 21 Lok Sabha seats. However, the ruling party is yet to declare nominees for 30 Assembly seats as it has announced names of 117 MLA candidates.