Lack of consensus behind BJD candidate list delay!
BHUBANESWAR: Even as a few weeks are left for the polls, the ruling BJD is yet to reach a consensus on several key constituencies as candidates for the Balasore Lok Sabha and 39 Assembly constituencies are yet to be announced.
Taking for instance, the delay in announcement of candidate for the Balasore Lok Sabha seat. It was speculated that BJP vice-president Lekhashree Samantsinghar, who joined the BJD after resigning from the saffron party on Sunday, would be announced as the Balasore LS candidate. However, the BJD is yet to make the announcement leading to further speculation regarding the party’s nominee from the seat.
Sources said the party is waiting for announcement of Congress candidate from the seat to decide its course of action. Congress had finalised the name of former Union minister Srikant Jena as its nominee from the seat after he rejoined the party recently, but the announcement has been deferred.
The sticking point, party sources said, is that Navajyoti Patnaik, son of former OPCC president Niranjan Patnaik, who had contested from the seat in 2019 is not ready to let go of the seat. If denied, he may choose other options. The BJD is waiting for announcement of the Congress candidate, sources said.
Besides, delay in announcement of candidates for three Assembly seats under the Sambalpur LS has also hit the ruling party’s preparations for its fight against Union minister and BJP candidate Dharmendra Pradhan. BJD organisational secretary Pranab Prakash Das is pitted against Pradhan in the LS seat.
Regarding Sambalpur Assembly seat, the party is yet to finalise the candidate as there are three aspirants. They are former district president Siddharth Das, former MLA and ex-district president Raseswari Panigrahi and Rairakhol MLA Rohit Pujari. Sources said the party has not given a green signal to any one of them further pushing the organisation into a state of confusion.
Similarly, candidate from Rairakhol is yet to be decided as its sitting MLA Pujari is interested for Sambalpur seat while veteran leader Prasanna Acharya is yet to completely recover from the near fatal road accident.
Confusion also prevails in Kuchinda Assembly seat with several aspirants trying for the ticket. Shifting of Nalini Kanta Pradhan to Athamallik Assembly seat has also created strong resentment. Several party leaders said if these problems are not sorted out as early as possible, it will be very difficult to successfully counter Union Minister Pradhan in the LS seat.
Problems also remain in several other seats including Angul, Kendrapara and Bhubaneswar-Central constituencies. It was expected that the leadership might reach a consensus over candidature without delay. However, supporters of former deputy speaker and sitting MLA Rajanikant Singh protested in front of Naveen Niwas on Tuesday demanding that Singh be renominated from the seat.
