PM's Impressive Approval Rate Will Help BJP do well in Odisha: Pradhan

Bhubaneswar: Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Sunday claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi commanded an impressive approval of 80per cent in Odisha and it would help the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to do well in the forthcoming Lok Sabha and State Assembly elections.

Pradhan had earlier claimed that the BJP would bag 15 of the 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha. He, however, has not yet spelt out how many assembly seats his party was expecting to get this time.

Odisha has got 147 assembly seats and the majority mark is 74. In 2019, the BJP had got only 23 seats. It strength in the State Assembly has reduced to 22 after it lost the Balasore by-election

“For Modi 3.0 and an impressive victory, we all have to target over 50 per cent votes in our respective booths. This is what the Prime Minister has appealed for. In Odisha, the PM’s approval rating is 80 per cent. The effect of Modi's juggernaut, his working style, and the Modi factor are being felt even in Odisha. We all have to make sure that 50 per cent of votes should be for Modi at the booth-level. This time, more than 50 per cent vote share will go to PM Narendra Modi,” Mr Pradhan added

The Union minister said India achieved new heights in development under PM Modi’s stable government.

“The rate of unemployment has declined, people’s income and farmers’ earnings have increased. Many people have moved above the poverty line and respect for women has increased. To provide momentum to this development, the Modi government should come to power once more,” he observed while speaking to reporters Delhi.

Similarly, upon reaching Odisha from New Delhi after attending the BJP's office bearers meeting, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in Odisha Legislative Assembly, Jayanarayan Mishra said they would reach out to all the four crore people in Odisha ahead of the elections.

“We met Prime Minister Narendra Modi, home minister Amit Shah, and party's national president JP Nadda. Our discussion with them was very encouraging. They asked us to work in such a way so as to ensure the party’s victory in the 2024 general elections. In the coming days, we will work hard to form a government in Odisha,” said Mishra.