Bhubaneswar: Odisha is all set for big day on Saturday when four most prestigious Lok Sabha constituencies will go for polling in the third phase of elections in the state.
As per the schedule announced by the Election Commission of India (ECI), polling will be held in six Lok Sabha constituencies of Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri, Sambalpur, Dhenkanal and Keonjhar and 42 Assembly segments under those on May 25.
The four constituencies of Bhubaneswar, Cuttack, Puri and Sambalpur have big names of the three major parties – BJD, BJP and Congress – trying their luck in the hustings.
In Bhubaneswar, the BJP has retained its sitting MP Aprajita Sarangi, while BJD has fielded Manmath Routray and the Congress has nominated Yasir Nawaz. While Aparajita is a former IAS officer, Manmath is a pilot and son of veteran Congress leader and Jatni MLA Suresh Routray.
Both BJP and BJD raised the stakes in Odisha Capital with the two parties showcasing their best faces during the campaign. If the saffron party presented none less than Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a massive roadshow in the city to prove its focus on the constituency, chief minister Naveen Patnaik took out three roadshows in different parts to win the votes for Manmath, who is a greenhorn in the politics.
The campaign also witnessed some bitter exchange of allegations between the two parties which at one point before the elections were reportedly going for an alliance. Interestingly, Manmath was relegated to the background as Naveen himself took up the cudgels. Besides branding Aparajita as a non-performing MP, he accused her of obstructing the heritage project of Lingaraj temple to hit the sentiments of the voters.
Aparajita, known for her fiery comments against the BJD leaders, retorted by challenging Naveen for an open debate on her performance. She even dared him to come to a public forum for debate within 48 hours.
Sambalpur is another seat where BJD and BJP have fielded their best cards. Senior BJP leader and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan is pitted against BJD’s organisational secretary Pranab Prakash Das here. The Congress has nominated former MP Nagendra Kumar Pradhan.
While Pradhan’s name as BJP candidate was making rounds much before the elections, BJD’s announcement of Jajpur MLA Das as its nominee in the western Odisha constituency came as a surprise for many. The campaign of the two leaders was observed with keen interest by the voters as Pradhan has entered electoral fray after a gap of 15 years, while Das has taken a huge risk by deserting his comfort zone to taste new grounds.
In Puri, which occupies a global space as one of four religious seats of Hindus, BJP has renominated its national spokesman Sambit Patra who is a known face in the media. But BJD sprung another surprise here as it nominated
Arup Patnaik, a former Mumbai police commissioner, by replacing sitting MP Pinaki Mishra. The Congress has nominated Jaynarayan Patnaik.
The constituency was tilting in favour of BJP as the party unleashed a high voltage campaign and even brought in the Prime Minister to take out a roadshow. But things went awry towards the end as Patra committed a major gaffe by saying that Lord Jagannath was a devotee of Narendra Modi.
Cuttack is another prestigious constituency which is going to polls on Saturday. It also had its fare share of political drama as BJD kept everyone guessing about renominating its sitting MP Bhartruhari Mahtab. The six-time MP made a U-turn and jumped to BJP at the last moment to bag the ticket from the saffron party.
He has locked horns with corporate honcho Santrupta Mishra of BJD. The third angle of contest has been put up by the Congress with its nominee and old guard Suresh Mohapatra.
In Dhenkanal, the BJD has replaced Mahesh Sahoo with Abinash Samal, the nephew of the party’s Dhenkanal MLA Sudhir Kumar Samal. The BJP has nominated veteran leader and former Rajya Sabha member Rudra Narayan Pani, while the Congress has given the ticket to Sashmita Behera.
The constituency will set for a contest between BJD’s young face and BJP’s stalwart even as the Congress has played the woman card.
In Keonjhar also, the BJD went for a change as it replaced the sitting MP Chandrani Murmu and nominated Dhanurjay Sidu. He is contesting against two-time MP Anant Nayak of BJP and Binod Bihari Nayak of Congress.
The BJP had won for three times from the constituency when it was in alliance with BJD from 1998 to 2004. The BJD has retained the seat since 2009.
The contest is set to be interesting as Sidu is turncoat as he was given BJD ticket after jumping from the Congress. On the other hand, BJP’s Nayak is a veteran leader in the national elections.
