The expected alliance between the BJP and the Biju Janata Dal hadn’t taken shape by Saturday evening, with BJD sources saying the saffron party was demanding too many seats and a central BJP leader claiming no seat talks had been held at all.

State BJP leaders, staunchly opposed to any alliance with the BJD, appeared happy at the growing uncertainty. A senior leader said the BJP had treated the BJD as its main enemy in Odisha ever since their old alliance collapsed in 2009 following the attacks on Christians in Kandhamal.

"We are the main Opposition party in the state. We have been fighting the BJD from every possible platform for the last 15 years," he said, requesting anonymity.

"How can we accept them as our ally? It’s going to destroy our support base in the state."

Vijaypal Singh Tomar, the BJP’s election-in-charge for Odisha who arrived from Delhi on Saturday, told reporters "there has been no discussion on an alliance".

"The central leadership has not talked to us on the issue. We will contest from all the Assembly and Lok Sabha seats in Odisha (where concurrent polls are to be held)," he said.

"We will win more than 80 (of the 147 Assembly) seats and form the state government. We will win more than 16 (of the 21) Lok Sabha seats from the state."

On Friday, after returning from Delhi, state BJP president Manmohan Samal too had denied having discussed an alliance.

BJD sources said seat talks had been held at the highest level but the BJP’s demand for nearly 50 Assembly seats together with 13 to 15 Lok Sabha seats — including Bhubaneswar and Puri — had proved a stumbling block.

During their earlier alliance, the BJD and the BJP had a seat-sharing ratio of 4:3, with Odisha’s ruling party contesting 84 Assembly and 12 Lok Sabha seats, leaving 63 and 9, respectively, for the partner.

As reported in this newspaper, the BJP this time is demanding more Lok Sabha seats from its prospective allies to try and achieve the target of 400 seats that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has set the NDA, while being prepared to accept fewer Assembly seats.

Sources in the BJD said there was some resentment in their party, too, over the talk of an alliance. They said party leaders were finding it hard to convince the rank and file that their main rival for the last 15 years was to become their ally again.

“It’s in the state’s interests that there is talk of an alliance,” former minister and senior BJD leader Nrusingha Charan Sahu told reporters on Saturday.

“We want good relations with the Centre. However, the decision will be taken by the chief minister, and whatever he decides will be obeyed. On our own, we can win more than 110 (Assembly) seats.”

Most politicians in the state acknowledge that the old BJP-BJD alliance, struck in 1998, was the result of political compulsion — the two parties needed to join hands to fight the Congress successfully.