Fight for the Puri Assembly seat in the upcoming poll is going to be tough after name of former Union Minister and founder of Samata Kranti Dal, Brajakishore Tripathy as an aspirant in BJP ticket emerged in the scene.
There is a buzz in the political circle here that Tripathy could be fielded by BJP as its candidate from Puri Assembly seat. If Tripathy tastes the poll waters, then there would be a keen fight between the BJD and BJP in Puri which has been a BJD stronghold.
If present MLA and Minister Maheswar Mohanty is seeks reelection from Puri legislative segment, then he has to confront the strong support base of Tripathy.
The former Union Minister has already won MLA three-time and MP four-time enjoying a portfolio of Steel Minister in the AB Vajpayee’s Government from 1999 to 2004.
Mahanty has evinced his interest in Puri seat again and ruled out a possibility of his wife entering the poll. He has also quashed a narrative of being fielded as MP candidature from Puri seat. “If the party likes I would stand again. There is no chance of my wife contesting the election,” said Mohanty.
Though there is no conformation about Tripathy’s candidature as of now, however, a talk is going round that he will join BJP in next couple of days as the dates of polls have already been announced.
Notably, Tripathy was a popular leader by winning Puri Parliamentary seat for three consecutive times. In 1991 he had made his first entry to Parliament from Janata Dal when Biju Patnaik was CM of Odisha.
Tripathy lost the election in 2009 when he was fielded as a MP nominee of the BJP. His controversial statement that ‘he was not a member of BJP’ had forced him to quit the party. He then had founded the Samata Kranti Dal in association with George Tirkey.