ROURKELA: Mired in factionalism and controversies, the ruling BJP’s electoral prospects do not seem promising in the tribal-dominated Sundargarh district ahead of the panchayat polls which are likely in March next year.
Given the current state of affairs, the BJP organisation is a divided house and lacks coordination in almost all the Assembly constituencies of Sundargarh. And the party faces its arch rival BJD which is still a dominant force at the grassroots level.
In the 2022 rural polls, the BJD had won 33 of the 35 Zilla Parishad (ZP) seats along with majority of the 17 posts of panchayat samiti (PS) chairpersons. BJD also has the maximum support of 279 sarpanchs.
In the backdrop of BJP going to the rural polls with its first government in Odisha, the party looks strong on paper. Yet, the ground realities present a worrying picture for the ruling party.
If party insiders are to be believed, factionalism has become BJP’s nemesis ever since the formation of the government. In Sundargarh Assembly constituency, the infighting between factions of former Sundargarh MLA Kusum Tete and incumbent district BJP president Girish Chandra Sahu remains a worrying factor.
Union Tribal Affairs Minister and Sundargarh MP Jual Oram will lead the party’s fight in the panchayat elections, but a section of the BJP is unsure how the rural voters would react to the controversies gripping the senior leader’s close aides.
In Talsara, the BJP looks strong but growing opposition to the proposed Ib irrigation dam project seems to undermine its electoral chances in the Assembly segment.
Despite BJP’s dominance in Sundargarh Parliamentary constituency, the party has never won beyond three of the seven Assembly segments. The BJP now has two MLAs in the district. Talsara is represented by deputy speaker BS Bhoi while district planning committee chairman DC Tanti is the MLA of RN Pali. The RN Pali segment is largely an urban area with panchayats forming a minuscule part of it.
BJP has never won the Rajgangpur segment which continues to remain a tough nut to crack. Congress MLA CS Raazen Ekka enjoys strong support of the decisive Christian community. Icing in the cake for the Congress is the BJP factions of Narsing Minz and others.
In Birmitrapur, the party has virtually become defunct after party candidate and former MLA Shankar Oram lost to BJD in 2024 elections. The BJP has its only ZP member from Nuagaon block, but the present equations do not look promising.
Bonai is Jual’s native place, yet CPM MLA Laxman Munda has been retaining the seat since 2014. The CPM and BJD are the main contenders with the BJP placed a distant third.
However, BJP spokesperson Dhiren Senapati claimed the party would register its best performance in the upcoming rural polls. The hike in paddy MSP, Ayushman Bharat scheme, Subhadra Yojana and the increased quota of free rice quota would benefit BJP.
BJP’s best performance was in 2017 with 13 ZP seats. But it has never formed the ZP council.