Bhubaneswar: With Lok Sabha elections just a few months away, the BJP leadership has started the process of identifying secure seats for two of its stalwarts from Odisha — Union ministers Ashwini Vaishnaw and Dharmendra Pradhan.
Vaishnaw and Pradhan are now members of the Rajya Sabha. While Vaishnaw represents Odisha, Pradhan was elected to Rajya Sabha from Madhya Pradesh.
According to sources, both of them will contest the Lok Sabha elections from Odisha.
The Odisha BJP leaders have been assigned the job of finding the Lok Sabha seats from where they feel confident about winning the election.
Both Vaishnaw and Pradhan are now extensively touring districts in Odisha. BJP sources said Vaishnaw is likely to zero in on the Cuttack Lok Sabha seat. He has extensively toured the Cuttack district for the last two days, engaging with the local party workers and attending a series of programmes, including a local football tournament.
Vaishnaw told reporters: “I am a disciplined soldier of the party. Whatever task the party assigns, I will carry it out.”
Ashwini, who previously served as a collector in the Cuttack district between
2001 and 2003, enjoys a good rapport with the people in Cuttack.
Although the district remains a stronghold of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the BJP has managed to penetrate the rural areas and establish a good organisational network.
During his visit to the district, the bureaucrat-turned-politician announced the extension of the railway network to Badamba and Narsinghapur and assured that the water logging issue near Gurudijhatia railway station would be resolved in three months.
He visited the Dhabaleswar temple, one of the major shrines of the Cuttack district, attended a football tournament, and announced a grant of Rs 50 lakh for the development of sports.
Earlier, there was speculation that Ashwini would contest the Balasore Lok Sabha seat, especially after his involvement in the rehabilitation work in the aftermath of the train tragedy at Bahanaga in the Balasore district. However, now he is focusing on Cuttack.
Dharmendra Pradhan, known as the face of the BJP in the state because of his strong clout in Delhi, is also looking for a safe Lok Sabha seat. “He can consolidate his position further in the party only by winning a direct election,” said a leader.
Sources said Pradhan is interested in Sambalpur. The BJP has a solid base in the Sambalpur district. The Leader of Opposition in the Odisha Legislative Assembly, Jay Narayan Mishra, represents the Sambalpur Assembly constituency, further consolidating the BJP’s position in the area. Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat is currently represented by BJP’s Nitesh Ganga Deb.
“Pradhan has been focusing on Sambalpur. A number of central government schemes have been introduced in the area,” said a senior party leader, adding that Pradhan on Monday addressed a mega rally in Sambalpur.
On the other hand, it has almost been finalised that the BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra will contest from Puri and the Bhubaneswar BJP MP Aparajita will enter the political battlefield from Bhubaneswar again.
