BHUBANESWAR: Putting to rest all speculations, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Saturday announced Santrupt Misra and Dr Datteswar Hota as the party’s candidates for the Rajya Sabha elections.
Misra, political secretary to party president Naveen Patnaik, had unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha election from Cuttack in 2024. However, the nomination of Dr Hota, a noted urologist of the state, came with a political twist, with the Congress offering its support to his candidature. This is for the first time that both the BJD and the Congress have come within handshaking distance to take on the BJP in Odisha.
Announcing the nominees, Naveen said, “The party has decided to field two candidates. The first candidate is senior party leader Santrupt Misra, and the second candidate, Datteswar Hota, a renowned doctor from Odisha, is a common candidate. Since he is a common candidate, I appeal to all parties to support him and send him to the Rajya Sabha.”
The BJD’s decision to field Dr Hota as a common candidate could tweak the political arithmetic, as the regional party does not have the numbers to win two seats on its own. Soon after Naveen made the announcement, Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Bhakta Charan Das extended his party’s support to Dr Hota’s candidature.
Das said he had met the BJD president at Naveen Nivas on Monday and discussed fielding a common candidate for the Rajya Sabha elections. Talking to this paper, however, he said Dr Hota would have to file his nomination papers as an Independent candidate for the Congress to support him. “If Dr Hota files his nomination papers as a BJD candidate, then Naveen Babu will have to seek the support of the Congress openly,” he added.
Going by the numbers in the Odisha Assembly, the BJD has 50 MLAs, two of whom have been suspended from the party. The Congress has 14 legislators and is also supported by the lone CPM member. However, the CPM is yet to make its stand clear on the RS polls.
As per the formula, the BJD will be left with 18 surplus votes after winning one seat with 30 first-preference votes. If the BJD and the Congress join hands, they will have 32 votes, which is adequate for Dr Hota’s victory.
With the BJD making its move, all eyes will now be on the BJP, which has 79 MLAs and the support of three Independents in the Assembly. It can win two seats and still have 22 surplus votes. The BJP will require only eight more votes to win the third seat.
Speculation that the BJP might field national president Nitin Nabin from Odisha has made the situation interesting. Sources said the national party may also field a nationally renowned personality for its third seat and announce him as a common candidate. This could leave the field wide open because of the prevailing internal conflicts in both the BJD and the Congress.
Meanwhile, several BJD leaders, including former MLA Prabhat Biswal, have openly opposed Mishra’s candidature. Political observers believe the situation will remain uncertain till the BJP announces its candidates.
Misra, a top corporate executive-turned-politician, joined the BJD ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Dr Hota previously served as principal of SCB Medical College and Hospital in Cuttack and is the founding vice-chancellor of the Odisha University of Health Sciences.