Confident of forming next govt, Naveen invites Modi to swearing-in

Bhubaneswar/Balasore: Confident of returning to power for a fifth consecutive term, chief minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend the swearing-in ceremony of the next BJD government after the results are declared on May 23.
At a rally in Basta under Balasore parliamentary constituency where election is scheduled on April 29, Naveen claimed his party has already secured enough votes in the first three phases to form the next government in the state. “The Prime Minister, during an election rally on Tuesday, stated that he would visit Odisha again after the exit of the BJD government in the state. With the blessings of the people of Odisha, BJD has already secured the majority mark at the end of the third phase of polling. With all humility, I invite Modiji to attend the oath-taking ceremony of the BJD government as a guest,” Naveen said amid loud cheers from the crowd.
Naveen’s retort comes a day after Modi, during an election rally in Kendrapada, said, “Naveen babu aapka jana taya hain (Naveen babu, your exit is certain).”
Elections to 105 of the 147 assembly seats have already been held in the state in the first three phases with the remaining seats going to polls on April 29.
BJD insiders said Naveen’s claim is based on the ground report collected by party workers during and after the elections. For the first time BJD has engaged agencies at the gram panchayat level to collect feedback from voters.
“The chief minister has travelled extensively across the state during the course of campaigning. He has sensed the mood of the people. Besides, we are getting feedback from multiple sources. So we are confident that the BJD will cross the halfway mark (74),” BJD spokesperson Amar Patnaik said.
The party claims it will do better than in 2014 as most of the parliamentary seats where election is scheduled in the fourth phase are considered BJD strongholds. The party had won 117 seats in the 2014 assembly elections.
Speaking at the rally, Naveen also launched a direct attack on Modi. “The prime minister did not come to Odisha during floods, cyclones or drought. He did not have time then. Now, since the elections are underway, he is frequenting the state to shed crocodile tears,” he said. The chief minister’s criticism followed Modi’s attack on Naveen over the political violence in the state in the run-up to the third phase of elections on Tuesday. Comparing the situation with West Bengal, Modi had said Naveen’s departure is imminent and people would throw him out in anger.
The chief minister also highlighted the issue of Balasore medical college to target Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Without naming Dharmendra, Naveen alleged that an Odia Union minister was opposed to the idea of setting up a medical college in Balasore. The state government had to move the Supreme Court empowered committee for the medical college.
EoM
Making sense of 2019 #ElectionswithtimesView Full Coverage