BHUBANESWAR:After demolishing the Left citadel in Tripura and making significant inroads in Nagaland and Meghalaya, the BJP on Sunday exuded confidence of dislodging the ruling BJD in Odisha in 2019 election. “Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik will face the same fate in 2019 as Tripura Chief Minister Mani Sarkar faced in the just concluded Assembly election,” Union Minister for tribal Affairs Jual Oram said at a media conference here.
There is a lot of similarities between Patnaik and Sarkar. In Tripura, Sarkar was running one of the most corrupt and inefficient government for the last 25 years behind a projected image of simplicity and clean image. Similar is the Naveen Patnaik Government under whose rule the corruption has thrived during the last 18 years. Besides, the BJD Government has proved to be inefficient as Odisha remains far behind many States in the development index, Oram said. Accusing the BJD of misusing Government machinery for political purpose, the Union Minister said the people of the State have made up their mind to remove this Government and bring BJP to power.
“The agency, which recently conferred the ideal Chief Minister award on Naveen Patnaik, had also felicitated Sarkar with the same award one year back. The people of Tripura had given their verdict to their best Chief Minister. I have no doubt that the people of Odisha will give a similar treatment to the ruling BJD in 2019,” Oram remarked.
The Union Minister said the people of the State have reposed faith in the BJP as the Congress has failed to play the role of opposition during the last 18 years. Instead of working for the people, the Congress is working for the BJD.
Responding to a query on party’s defeat in Bijepur by-election, Oram said the party could not achieve the desired result due tacit understanding between the BJD and the Congress. Besides, the massive misuse of Government machinery by the ruling party ensured the BJP defeat.On the party’s Chief Ministerial face for Odisha, he said the Central leadership will decide it at the appropriate time. The BJP will win election without a chief ministerial candidate and this has happened many times.