After 15 years, BJP-BJD alliance on cards in Odisha ahead of LS polls
The two parties were allies in the past but their relations strained in 2008
Within a day of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Odisha visit and his profuse praise of BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, a distinct possibility of BJP-BJD alliance ahead of the coming Lok Sabha polls looks set to take a concrete shape in the days to come.
Both the BJP and the BJD held extensive discussions among their party leaders, hinting at a tie-up between them. Indications to this effect were available when Odisha BJP leaders on Wednesday met Home Minister Amit Shah and the party’s national president J P Nadda in the national capital and held discussions about entering into an alliance with the BJD for the Lok Sabha and Assembly polls, which are held simultaneously in the state.
Though there was no formal announcement about an alliance between the ruling BJD and the Opposition BJP in Odisha, developments pointed out that a tie-up may well be on the cards.
In Bhubaneshwar, BJD leaders held a marathon meeting at the residence of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the BJP leaders had a similar meeting in New Delhi and discussed poll-related matters.
BJD vice-president and MLA Debi Prasad Mishra admitted to discussions about a possible alliance with the BJP. “Biju Janata Dal will prioritise the greater interests of the people of Odisha. Yes, there were discussions on the issue (alliance),” he told journalists.
Asserting that Odisha had seen significant progress under Naveen Patnaik’s leadership, Mishra stressed upon the need to take the state’s development to the next level.
A press release, issued by Mishra and BJD’s senior general secretary Arun Kumar Sahoo, said: “An extensive discussion was held under the leadership of BJD president and CM Naveen Patnaik with the senior leaders of the party regarding the strategy of the upcoming Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections.”
Meanwhile, after a meeting presided over by BJP president JP Nadda in Delhi, senior BJP leader and MP Jual Oram also acknowledged the discussions on a pre-poll alliance with the BJD. However, he said the party’s central leadership would make the final decision on the matter.
Senior party leaders of Odisha, including Odisha BJP president Manmohan Samal, and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, attended the core committee meeting chaired by Nadda. A few days ago both the parties had dismissed media reports about a potential pre-poll alliance.
Odisha has 21 Lok Sabha seats and 147 Assembly seats. The BJD and the BJP won 12 and eight parliamentary seats and 112 and 23 Assembly constituencies respectively in 2019.
The two parties have been allies in the past but their relations strained in 2008, after the Kandhmal riots and the ties were snapped in 2009. The BJD had gone solo in the 2009, 2014 and 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
In the recent past, the BJD has been by and large supportive of the Modi government’s agenda in Parliament. In last month’s Rajya Sabha elections, Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw sailed through with the support of the BJD as the BJP did not have enough numbers to secure his victory. If an alliance is forged between the two parties, it will signal BJD’s return to the NDA fold after a gap of 15 years.
