BHUBANESWAR: Despite a heavy defeat by over nearly 21,000 votes in the Pipili bypoll, the BJP sought to take the positives from the fight, stating that it has improved its vote share in a coastal seat, which is considered a fort of the BJD for nearly three decades.There is nothing to be disheartened with the result as the candidate Ashrit Pattanayak gave a good fight to the ruling BJD, party leaders said.
The saffron party which had got only 7.39 per cent (pc) of votes in 2009, the year the BJD broke the alliance, has been able to improve its share to 42 pc. Ajit Mangaraj was the BJP nominee in the 2009 election.State BJP president Sameer Mohanty, said the poll results showed that as high as 42 pc of the voters are disillusioned with the BJD government. Despite use of money and muscle power, the government failed to entice voters who have supported the BJP.
“The Congress has also contributed to the victory of the BJD. A national party like the INC was a force to reckon with in Pipili constituency till 1980. Its candidates have been forfeiting its deposits in successive elections, The Congress leadership have been helping the BJD to prevent a victory for the BJP,” he added.
The deferment of election for nearly five months from April 17 to September 30 provided enough opportunity to the ruling party to use official machinery to distribute the Fani assistance and crop insurance. The long gap helped the ruling party, he said adding, there is always a silver lining in the cloud as is reflected in the party candidate’s performance.
The saffron party had in 1995 first put up a candidate in the constituency, which has been represented by a political heavy weight like Pradeep Maharathy since 1985. The election saw a crushing defeat for Maharathy and the last win for the Congress. BJP candidate Nabakishore Rout had secured around 16,000 votes then.
The voting percentage of the BJP went down to 4.75 pc in the 2014 Assembly elections which was swept by the BJD. The BJP picked Ashrit who had got 11.16 pc votes in 2014 as its candidate for the 2019 election and he delivered by increasing the vote share of party to around 41 pc. He has again proved his merit for the BJP by increasing the share of the popular vote to 42 pc, Mohanty said.