BHUBANESWAR: The reversal of BJP’s fate in the Assembly elections of five states has failed to dampen the mood of the party’s Odisha unit. It is confident of wresting power from ruling BJD in 2019.
Describing the party’s defeat in three BJP-ruled states as an outcome of anti-incumbency factor, State BJP president Basanta Panda said people of these states wanted a change believing that the new government will perform better than the incumbent ones.
Since the BJP has been ruling for a long time in Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh, the people’s expectations from the ruling party will be naturally high. People’s verdict in this election showed that the saffron party has failed to meet the aspiration of people, he added.
Claiming that the Naveen Patnaik Government will face the same fate in the coming Assembly election, due early next year, Panda said people of Odisha are fed up with the BJD misrule.
Asserting that people of Odisha have made up their mind to end the BJD maladministration by bringing BJP to power, State BJP chief said Assembly election results of the five states will have no impact on his party in Odisha.
Rubbishing Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s claim that the BJP lost the election in three major agrarian states, including Rajasthan, due to Narendra Modi Government’s failure to address the problems of farmers, BJP general secretary Prithviraj Harichandan said the Central Government had substantially increased the minimum support price of foodgrain which it had never done before.
The Chief Minister is trying to shift the blame to the Prime Minister as his Government has miserably failed to protect the interest of farmers resulting in a large number of them committing suicide. The farmers of Odisha will give a fitting reply to the ruling BJD, which took all possible measures to muzzle their agitation, in the next election, he said.