Bhubaneswar: Ahead of hitting the campaign trail for the by-poll, opposition BJD president Naveen Patnaik Thursday shared a message saying that ‘Nuapada will win’, while his rival political parties like BJP and Congress claimed that the results would be one-sided in their favour.
Patnaik, who has fielded a woman candidate in Nuapada by-polls slated to go for voting on November 11, shared a video clip of BJD candidate Snehangini Chhuria on X.
In an accompanying message, the former chief minister said, “Nuapada will win. A new stream of service and development will begin. #JuharNuapada #VoteForBJD #BJD4Nuapada”.
While many in the Odisha political circle find it difficult to decode Patnaik’s message, BJD MP Muzibulla Khan, popularly known as Munna Khan, said, “Naveen Babu has said that the victory of the BJD candidate will be a win for Nuapada, and the party will carry forward the stream of development that has started since the Biju Patnaik era.”
The Nuapada assembly segment has witnessed at least 18 elections, including one by-poll in 1997, since 195,1, and all the winning candidates were male. This time, a woman candidate from BJD is in the race, and if she wins the polls, it will create a new history, said BJD vice-president Debi Prasad Mishra.
The by-election, necessitated due to the demise of BJD MLA Rajendra Dholakia, has been witnessing interesting developments since the beginning.
Dholakia’s son Jay, who was tipped to become the BJD candidate, suddenly joined the BJP and became its candidate, and Patnaik fielded his party’s women wing president Senhangini Chhuria, who hails from neighbouring Bargarh district.
The Congress has fielded its old horse Ghasiram Majhi, who has unsuccessfully contested from Nuapada five times earlier.
The by-poll in Nuapada is also crucial for all three major parties as it will be the first electoral test for Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi after the formation of the BJP’s maiden government in the state in 2024.
While the Nuapada by-election is a prestige issue for Naveen Patnaik, whose BJD was ousted from power after 24 years, Odisha Congress president and former union minister Bhakta Charan Das hails from Kalahandi Lok Sabha constituency, of which Nuapada is a part.
Though Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has visited Nuapada at least twice in October, Patnaik is yet to tour the by-poll-bound assembly segment.
Claiming that Patnaik is a craze among the people of Nuapada, Khan said the BJD president is scheduled to address a public meeting there November 3. Apart, the BJD leaders have also proposed a road show of Patnaik November 7, though this programme has not yet been finalised.
Party sources said that Patnaik will make two visits to Nuapada during the campaign.
Ahead of Patnbaik’s visit to Nuapada, the BJD workers are circulating AI-generated videos on social media platforms to create hype among the people.
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