The results of the general elections in Sambalpur Parliament seat revealed that maximum voters in Angul district cast their votes for BJD nominee Nagendra Pradhan and helped him win the seat. The Sambalpur Parliamentary constituency has two Assembly segments in Angul district, one in Deogarh and four in Sambalpur district.
But the voters of Athamalik and Chhendipada Assembly constituencies in Angul district contributed a lot for the victory of Pradhan and BJP candidate Suresh Pujari’s drubbing. In Athamalik, Pradhan got 47, 000 votes more than what Pujari got. Similarly, Pradhan got 43, 000 votes more than Pujari in Chhendipada. In Rairakhol, Pradhan got 15, 000 more votes than Pujari. But in Sambalpur, Kuchinda and Deogarh, it was Pujari who got more votes than Pradhan. In Deogarh, Pujari got 38, 000 more votes than Pradhan. Similarly, he got 15,000 and 20,000 more in Sambalpur and Kuchinda seats. Even though Sambalpur BJP MlA Jayanarayan Mishra got defeated by a margin of 9, 000 votes, but voters supported Pujari as a MP aspirant. Still, Pradhan got an edge over Pujari and won by a margin of 32, 000 votes.
Pradhan thanked all the voters of the constituency for his victory. “I am grateful to all the voters of Sambalpur for reposing faith on me,” said Pradhan. He also denied caste factor behind his victory. If people of Chhendipada and Athamalik are said to have voted on the basis of caste, why it didn’t happen at Deogarh, a district where Chasa clan has a predominant presence, Pradhan asked.