Odisha BJP Lacks Poll Preparedness

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which aims to grab power in the state in 2024, seems to be seriously lacking in poll preparation. The party has not yet apparently been able to put in place a comprehensive election strategy. Nor has it been able to instill the required energy and spirit in the minds of its cadres and workers to put up a challenging fight to topple the apple car of the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) that has been in power since 2000.

In 2019, the saffron party had set a mission of getting 120 of the 147 assembly seats. Popularly known as Mission 120, the target was set by the BJP national president Amit Shah at a public meeting here in Bhubaneswar. However, the outcome of the 2019 polls marked the saffron party utterly failing to live up to Mr Shah’s expectation as it bagged only 23 seats. The rate of mission accomplishment was abysmally low – a paltry 9.16 per cent.

This time around, the BJP has not yet declared its mission. However, it dreams, albeit without reasonable groundwork, to improve its tally in 2024 polls by benefitting from what it claims is the “growing anger” of the people against the Naveen Patnaik administration. Manmohan Samal, the party’s new state president, exudes confidence to reach the majority mark of 74.

According to political analysts, the BJP’s activities in the past few months do not reflect a convincing picture about its effort to woo the voters to its side. Its guns are no longer blazing over corruption and governance failure issues. It has long buried the chit fund and mining scam issues that it had heavily relied on in the run-up to 2019 assembly and Lok Sabha polls. Those two issues had catapulted the BJP to second position from the petty third spot in the state political landscape.

In the face of growing bonhomie between the BJP’s central leaders and top BJD leaders at national level, the BJP rank and file in the state are feeling a bit let down. Many of them show reluctance to take on the mighty ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) headed by the maverick Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, fearing political reprisal and retaliation. Party’s frontal organisations like women wing, youth and student organisations do not appear to be raring to go to give a check to the BJD, add the analysts.

“No word of aggression, a key element to rouse the voters against the establishment, has come from the saffron party’s central leaders in the recent past. Rather, words of appreciation have flowed unhindered, only to add to the confusion of the people who believe the two parties – who shared power in the state from 2000 to 2009 – still have the hangover of mutuality,” said Dr Kishore Chandra Swain, a retired professor in political science.

Political commentators are of the view that the saffron party must bring clarity on its Odisha mission.

“The BJD, which has always sided with the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the Parliament as well as outside, must tell the voters of Odisha unequivocally that it has no plans to align with the BJD – either before the 2024 elections or thereafter. Otherwise, people won’t believe this party is something different and a rival of the BJD. The saffron party’s claim that it has 32.49 per cent votes as per the 2019 Assembly polls in the state is a misnomer. It has come down to BJP getting 30.07 per cent votes in 2022 rural polls. The party has to accept the reality and needs to make amends to remain in the reckoning.  Any overestimation of its own strength and underestimation of rival’s potentiality will surely be suicidal,” pointed out Dr Swain.