Odisha: BJD strategy for 2024 hinges on outcome

BHUBANESWAR: The outcome of Padampur byelection will decide BJD's plans for 2024 and beyond, analysts said as another defeat here would mean dissenting voices could go public and add fuel to BJP's new narrative of 'parivartan' in the coastal state.
While intra-party discontent in the regional party never comes to the fore, the recent Dhamanagar loss was to some extent explained as no loss no gain for the regional party, because the BJP retained a seat, riding on sympathy for its deceased MLA Bishnu Charan Sethi by fielding his son Suryabanshi Suraj.
However, in case of Padampur there would be no such comfort for Naveen's party. Since the seat was held by BJD's Bijaya Ranjan Singh Bariha, whose death in October necessitated the bypoll on Monday, the perceived sympathy should be in BJD's favour as the party has fielded Bijaya's daughter Barsha.
Moreover, chief minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik who had not campaigned in person in past three years in the last five bypolls in Tirtol, Balasore in November 2020, Pipili in September last year, Brajarajnagar in June and Dhamnagar last month, held series of public rallies in Padampur.
"It's a test case. Any loss will be seen as a serious debacle to BJD and setback to the regional party's bid to win back western Odisha where BJP had done comparatively well in 2019," said R K Satapathy, a retired professor of North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong. The BJD has thrown its entire might deputing almost all other ministers, MPs, MLAs and senior leaders in Padampur. The importance attached to the campaign may be gauged from the fact that finance minister Niranjan Pujari skipped the winter session of assembly to be in campaign trail.
Bhubaneswar: The outcome of Padampur byelection will decide BJD's plans for 2024 and beyond, analysts said as another defeat here would mean dissenting voices could go public and add fuel to BJP's new narrative of 'parivartan' in the coastal state.
While intra-party discontent in the regional party never comes to the fore, the recent Dhamanagar loss was to some extent explained as no loss no gain for the regional party, because the BJP retained a seat, riding on sympathy for its deceased MLA Bishnu Charan Sethi by fielding his son Suryabanshi Suraj.
However, in case of Padampur there would be no such comfort for Naveen's party. Since the seat was held by BJD's Bijaya Ranjan Singh Bariha, whose death in October necessitated the bypoll on Monday, the perceived sympathy should be in BJD's favour as the party has fielded Bijaya's daughter Barsha.
Moreover, chief minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik who had not campaigned in person in past three years in the last five bypolls in Tirtol, Balasore in November 2020, Pipili in September last year, Brajarajnagar in June and Dhamnagar last month, held series of public rallies in Padampur.
"It's a test case. Any loss will be seen as a serious debacle to BJD and setback to the regional party's bid to win back western Odisha where BJP had done comparatively well in 2019," said R K Satapathy, a retired professor of North-Eastern Hill University, Shillong. The BJD has thrown its entire might deputing almost all other ministers, MPs, MLAs and senior leaders in Padampur. The importance attached to the campaign may be gauged from the fact that finance minister Niranjan Pujari skipped the winter session of assembly to be in campaign trail.