Mahakud makes hectic efforts to halt their move
The political parties, mainly the BJD and BJP, have intensified their campaign to capture the high profile Chairman seat of mining rich Joda Municipality of Keonjhar district.
Former MLA Sanatan Mahakud was in the centre stage by holding midnight meeting with core supporters to thrash out a strategy for the win of the BJD candidate.
Considering the candidatures of all parties, initially it was hoped that BJD will have a cakewalk after Dr Jagdish Prasad Sahoo, a retired Government doctor, filed nomination as a BJD candidate. But the situation took a different turn after some dissident BJD leaders and particularly former Chairman RK Das filed nomination for the Chairman post as dissidents.
At the initial stage BJD tried to normalise the situation by persuading the dissidents to withdraw and had somewhat become successful. TU leader and former Councillor Santosh Kumar had withdrawn his candidature. But RK Das did not budge.
He claimed that he would win the election basing on the achievents during his tenure. He also declared that Naveen Patnaik was his leader.
On the other hand, BJP is also trying hard to gain the sympathy of voters by high lighting the anti incumbency against Champua MLA Meenkshi Mahanta.
The BJP intensified its attack on the BJD Government by launching Satyagraha. They protested against the apathy of Naveen Government in taking action against Chilika MLA Prasanta Kumar Jagdev, who is a habitual offender and his latest attempt to kill people by running over his vehicle on them had left the entire State shocked.
Sources revealed that although Sanatan is not in any portfolio of BJD party but he has a support base in Keonjhar district. The BJD was able to wrest all the Panchayat and Zila Parishad seats in the district by cashing in on the efforts of the former MLA.
Meanwhile, BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik took a drastic step by suspending RK Das from the party for anti party activities.