The municipal chairman election results in Keonjhar district reflected that political parties can compromise anything for power. In Barbil Municipality, Dillip Mishra of BJP was elected as the chairman.
The BJD had won five seats, the Congress seven while two seats were won by the BJP and one seat went to an Independent candidate. laxman Mohanta, chairman candidate of Congress was confident of winning the covetous post but things went awry in the last moment.
The BJP with two seats had earlier decided to abstain from voting since they disliked supporting their rival BJD or Congress. Finally, the BJD decided to support BJP candidate Mishra as the chairman and restrained the Congress from power. Similarly, the BJP supported the BJD chairman candidate Mina Majhi in Keonjhar Municipality defeating the Congress candidate Saroj Sahoo.
Here, the BJD had won 14 seats, Congress six and BJP one seat. In Joda Municipality, Manjula Patra of BJD, the only eligible chairman candidate had to be elected uncontested as there was no other Schedule Caste woman candidate to vie with her.