With the first phase polls just over a week away, a sense of uncertainty prevails in the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) over the fate of its candidates contesting in more than 45 Assembly constituencies, of which about 30 are in the coastal belt.
For the party leadership, there are disturbing reports from these constituencies during the election campaign as the prospects of these candidates are far from satisfactory.Even as the party nominees have been challenged by rebel candidates contesting as Independents in many constituencies, former BJD leader and present Odisha Jan Morcha (OJM) chief Pyarimohan Mohapatra is on job to ensure the BJD’s defeat in about 40 seats irrespective of which other party or other candidates win from there.
Reportedly, a worried BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik has asked his confidants to formulate a strategy to reverse the situation as early as possible.As for the lok Sabha seats, ground zero reports suggest that the prospects of the BJP have brightened considerably in Sundargarh, Sambalpur and Bargarh in western Odisha. The party is also growing hopeful about the Balangir lS seat.
So, the prospects of the BJD in the Assembly segments coming under these lok Sabha constituencies are not favourable. There is threat that the BJD may lose the loisingha, Balangir, Rourkela, Redhakhol, Deogarh and Bhatli Assembly seats, all in the western region.In the south, the Jeypore and laxmipur Assembly seats also look uncertain for the BJD to retain. The party is also not reportedly secure in Gunpur, Umarkote, Nabarangpur, Polsara and Aska in this region, besides in Phulbani and Dharamgarh.
In its the coastal region bastion too, the BJD, which had won a whopping 70 out of the total 77 seats in 2009, is now facing a stiff challenge in about 30 seats. There are reports that the party’s fate in Niali, Satyabadi, Brahmagiri and Kakatpur is uncertain. Similar is its situation in the Keonjhar Sadar, Telkoi, Patana and Anandpur seats.The BJD candidates are also not feeling safe in several other Assembly constituencies like Ali, Rajnagar, Mahakalpada, Baleswar Sadar, Bhandaripokhari, Bhadrak, Dhamnagar, Chandbali, Jashipur, Badasahi and Morada, Khandapada, Ranpur, Jatni, Khordha, Chilika and Hindol.
Besides, the BJD candidates are also apprehensive in the Sukinda, Korei and Badachana constituencies. All these candidates now hope that Naveen Patnaik would come to their rescue by visiting their areas or employing some other means.