BARGARH: ITS promise to upgrade the Padampur sub-division into a full-fledged district before the 2024 elections may have come back to bite Biju Janata Dal in Padampur Assembly constituency with the opposition political parties fully exploiting the resultant public resentment.
Residents of Padampur are expressing disappointment over what they perceive as a gimmick by the BJD to garner votes during the by-election held last year.
While campaigning for his party candidate in Padampur by-poll in 2022, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had announced to upgrade the sub-division into a district by December 2023. However in December last week, the Orissa High Court directed the state government against issuing any final order in this regard without its permission.
Sources said following the HC’s order, voters of Padampur feel let down by the BJD government and this may have a bearing on the prospects of the ruling party in the upcoming general elections.
However, senior BJD leader of Padampur Raju Ghibela claimed the chief minister is definitely going to keep his word. “Work was underway in this direction in full swing but the high court order became a roadblock. The state government has already moved the Advocate General over the issue. After complying with all the requirements of the court, Padampur will surely be declared a separate district,” he added.
On the other hand, the BJP has started preparations to capitalise on the public discontentment and rally public support against the BJD. Senior BJP leader Pradip Purohit said the failure to meet the expectations of people under the pretext of an HC order clearly reflects the lack of commitment of the BJD government.
“The promise of making Padampur a district seemed vague from the beginning. Fulfilling the demand would have re-ignited the movement for separate districts in other parts of the state, putting the ruling BJD in a difficult situation. So the government has deliberately chosen to deceive and cheat the people of Padampur for the sake of winning the by-election,” alleged Purohit who was the BJP candidate in Padampur by-election.
He further said the BJD cannot win the Padampur seat in the upcoming general elections as people have lost faith in the ruling party.