Five millionaires are in fray in several constituencies in Kendrapada district. They are Pratap Keshari Deb, Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak, Kishore Tarei, Bed Prakash Agarwal and Ganeswar Behera.
Among the contesting heavyweights, the richest is three-time MlA and Food Supply and Consumer Welfare Minister Pratap Keshari Deb.Deb owns property worth Rs3.98 crores. The 43-year-old scion of the erstwhile Ali royal family has movable assets worth Rs41 lakh whereas his immovable property is worth nearly Rs3.57 crore. But the most baffling point is that the sitting MlA’s movable and immovable properties have doubled in last half decade.
Similarly, as per the affidavit filed by former Energy Minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak, who has fielded his candidature for the second time from the Mahakalpada Assembly segment, Nayak and his wife’s movable properties are estimated to be Rs53.61 lakh whereas his immovable property is estimated at nearly Rs60.98 lakh. Five years back, he had property worth only Rs24.67 lakh. In last five years, Nayak’s property has gone up by four times.
As per the affidavit filed by Kishore Chandra Tarai, former BJD MlA of Pattamundai and a BJD candidate contesting for the Kendrapada Assembly seat this time, he has moveable assets worth of Rs1.13 crore, including Rs89.73 lakh in his wife’s name. Similarly, he has immovable property worth Rs30 lakh. But in 2004, he possessed property, both movable and immovable, worth of Rs7.69 lakh.
Similarly, his rival candidate Ganeswar Behera, who has fielded his candidature from Congress this time, has a moveable assets of Rs11.84 lakh ,including Rs5.70 lakh in his wife’s name. His wife possesses immovable property worth of Rs90 lakh. Behera had movable assets of Rs5.12 lakh, when he contested against Tarai a decade back in 2004 from Pattamundai.
Former Minister Bed Prakash Agarwal, who is contesting from the Patkura seat this time, has swelled his property by several folds in last five years. Agarwal and his wife’s property was worth Rs1.44 crore in 2009 but presently, while he has movable assets of Rs51 lakh, his wife has property worth Rs1.06 crore. Similarly, Agarwal has immovable assets worth Rs35 lakh and his wife has immovable property worth Rs23 lakh.
Bijay Mohapatra, who has filed his nomination on a BJP ticket, will lock horns with Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak in Mahakalpada. Mohapatra has an estimated property worth Rs50 lakh.