Bhubaneswar: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Jharsuguda district president Mangal Sahoo joined Biju Janata Dal (BJD) Wednesday, giving a blow to the saffron party ahead of the May 10 bypoll.
After joining the ruling party in presence of Rajya Sabha MP Manas Mangaraj at Sankha Bhavan here, Sahoo met BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Speaking to mediapersons, Sahoo said, “I worked diligently to strengthen the BJP organisation in Jharsuguda. It pained me when some BJP leaders engaged in petty politics by giving up the ideology and principles of the party. Thus, I left the BJP and joined the BJD.”
Sahoo said he joined BJD as he was immensely inspired by the ideals of the Chief Minister and party president Naveen Patnaik.
He claimed that many BJP leaders are now unhappy as the party is indulging in cheap politics over the murder of minister Naba Kishore Das instead of highlighting other important issues.
Mangaraj said Sahoo’s entry into BJD will further strengthen the party’s base in Jharsuguda and boost its prospects in the forthcoming bypoll.
Sahoo was among the star campaigners of BJP for Jharsuguda Assembly byelection to be held May 10. His move to join the BJD is seen as a setback for BJP at a time when campaigning is gaining momentum for the bypoll.
The BJP, however, claimed that Sahoo joining the ruling party will not have any impact on the saffron party’s poll prospects.
BJP state president Manmohan Samal, in his reaction, said, “BJP contests elections on the basis of a particular ideology. It is not dependent on any one individual.”
Notably, the Jharsuguda Assembly segment will go for byelection May 10 while the result will be declared May 13. The bypoll is necessitated due to the murder of sitting MLA Naba Kishore Das January 29.
The BJD has fielded Das’ daughter Dipali in the bypoll while BJP has given ticket to its youth leader Tankadhar Tripathy. The Congress has picked former MLA Biren Pandey’s son Tarun Pandey as its candidate for the byelection.
PNN