BJP leader Dilip Ray is increasingly using the social media to lure the younger lot ahead of the general elections. An early riser, Ray keeps switching on to Facebook account and wishing special messages to his friends, followers and colleagues.
Take an example: Ray began Thursday with “Everyone can read the expression of your face, but only your friends can read the depression of your heart. Good morning, friends, enjoy the day!”
The political scenario is changing fast in Rourkela, Ray’s political turf where after a long spell he has again been emerging as a force to reckon with. And in the process, with growing support from the youth masses of the Steel City, he seems to have unnerved present local BJD MlA and former minister Sarada Prasad Nayak.
Nayak, who lacks charisma, had earlier turned out to be a powerful force in Rourkela with the blessings of the BJD’s the then strongman Pyarimohan Mohapatra. After the breakup of the team between BJD chief Naveen Patnaik and Mohapatra, he has been losing Patnaik’s confidence, though trying to save his skin by cultivating Patnaik confidant Kalpatatru Das, who is the Minister of Panchayati Raj and Parliamentary Affairs and in charge of BJD affairs in Sundargarh and Jharsuguda districts. But Ray, who is also a highly-successful hotelier, is gaining ground in Rourkela because of the leadership vacuum and the disenchantment of the youth towards Nayak, say observers.