BHUBANESWAR: The BJP choosing politically insignificant Tumudibandha of Kandhamal district to start its electoral campaign followed by Banpur under Puri parliamentary constituency is not without any reason.
This is a well-thought-out strategy of the saffron party which is expecting the 2024 Lok Sabha election to be a tougher battle in view of the changes in the NDA constituents and the regrouping of political parties opposed to it. There is a growing concern for the BJP after a recent survey suggested the number of seats that have turned vulnerable for it has gone up from 144 to 160.
Statewise strength, weakness, opportunities and threats (SWOT) analysis and evaluation of the party’s prospects have identified at least four Lok Sabha seats in Odisha that the BJP may not retain in the next elections.
“The four out of eight seats that the BJP won in 2019 and have now turned ‘vulnerable’ are Bargarh, Balasore, Balangir and Kalahandi,” informed sources in the party said.
The party has lost hope for the Bargarh Lok Sabha seat represented by Suresh Pujari after it lost three by-elections. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik who stunned everyone by filing nominations from Hinjili and Bijepur Assembly constituencies had to leave the latter after winning both seats with an impressive margin. The BJP lost it to Rita Sahu of the BJD in the bypoll.
The BJD handed over the second defeat to BJP in the Brajrajnagar bypoll which was held in June this year. Former MLA and BJP nominee Radharani Panda finished third and openly alleged some of her party colleagues ensured her defeat by joining hands with the BJD. The Padampur by-election was the last the BJP lost in a nail-biting fight with the BJD.
The survey report of the three other Parliamentary seats states that voters are not happy with the performance of the sitting MPs. Balasore is represented by former Union minister Pratap Sarangi while Sangeeta Singh Deo has been elected thrice from Balangir. Basanta Panda represents the Kalahandi Lok Sabha seat.
The main grouse of the electorate of the three constituencies against their MPs is that they have not done anything significant despite the BJP being in power in the Centre. Against this backdrop, the central BJP leadership has turned its focus to other seats where the party had lost by a slender margin in the 2019 elections to recoup the loss and maintain a comfortable majority to return to power.
Apart from Kandhamal and Puri, the party has set its eyes on Bhadrak, Dhenkanal and Nabarangpur Lok Sabha seats for a win.