The BJD chief’s aura remains undiminished in the state, but his party has ceded massive ground to the saffron party in the Lok Sabha
It did not matter that Naveen Patnaik, 72, has been the chief minister of Odisha for 19 years and four consecutive terms. The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) chief yet again defied anti-incumbency and the naysayers’ predictions to win the state by a handsome majority, grabbing 115 of the 146 seats in the assembly. The BJP was way behind with 20 seats while the Congress bagged just 8. And even though the BJD tally in the Lok Sabha has dipped in 2019, it still bagged 13 of the state’s 21 Lok Sabha seats whereas the BJP increased its tally to 8. Odisha had simultaneous elections for the assembly and the Lok Sabha.
The BJD had won 117 assembly and 20 (of the 21) Lok Sabha seats in Odisha in 2014. The BJP had then won just one Lok Sabha and 10 assembly seats; the Congress 16 assembly and nil Lok Sabha seats. This time, too, the Congress failed to win any LS seat.
This story is from the June 03, 2019 edition of India Today.
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This story is from the June 03, 2019 edition of India Today.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
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