May 30th 2024.
Bhubaneswar was buzzing with excitement as the intense campaigning for the Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Odisha finally came to an end after two long months. The fourth and final phase of the elections, which will cover six Lok Sabha constituencies and 42 Assembly segments, is set to take place on June 1st.
The six parliamentary seats up for grabs are Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur. The previous three rounds of elections covered a total of 15 Lok Sabha and 105 assembly seats. The major political parties, including the ruling BJD, BJP, and Congress, have been actively canvassing for their candidates since May 13th.
The BJP, in particular, had a strong presence in the campaign with Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressing 10 rallies in the state. Other prominent leaders such as Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, and Dharmendra Pradhan also made their presence felt, along with chief ministers from BJP-ruled states like Himanta Biswa Sarma and Vishnu Dev Sai. J P Nadda, the BJP party president, also made an appearance in Odisha to support the party's candidates.
During the last leg of campaigning on May 29th, Modi raised concerns about the health of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and questioned the possibility of a conspiracy behind his deteriorating condition. He also promised to set up a special committee to investigate any possible conspiracy if BJP forms the government in the state. In response, Patnaik expressed disappointment in Modi's comments, stating that the prime minister could have simply called him to inquire about his health.
Modi and other BJP leaders also focused on the issue of "Odia Asmita," attacking Patnaik's close aide VK Pandian and accusing him of controlling the chief minister and abusing his power. Pandian, who is originally from Tamil Nadu, dismissed these claims as anti-Odisha propaganda and referred to the BJP leaders as mere "political tourists."
The issue of the missing keys of Ratna Bhandar in the Lord Jagannath Temple in Puri also emerged as a major topic during the campaign. BJP's Puri Lok Sabha candidate Sambit Patra made a controversial comment, stating that Lord Jagannath was a devotee of PM Modi. This sparked outrage from both BJD and Congress, who condemned Patra's statement. He later apologized, claiming that it was a slip of the tongue.
Meanwhile, the ruling BJD's campaign mainly revolved around two key figures - Naveen Patnaik and VK Pandian. Both leaders held multiple rallies and roadshows throughout the state. Patnaik, in his usual style, delivered a brief speech during his final election meeting in Chandbali.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi also made appearances in the state, addressing several rallies. On the last day of campaigning, Gandhi criticized both BJD and BJP for their alleged partnership.
The Chief Electoral Officer of Odisha, NB Dhal, announced that around one crore people are expected to cast their votes in the six Lok Sabha seats and 42 assembly segments on June 1st. To ensure a fair and safe election, 125 companies of central forces have been deployed. The Election Commission has set up 10,882 polling booths across the six parliamentary seats.
Since the beginning of the election process, the EC has seized cash, liquor, drugs, and valuable materials worth Rs 275 crore in Odisha. This is significantly higher than the total amount of seizures made during the 2019 and 2014 elections, which were Rs 44.07 crore and Rs 20.08 crore, respectively.
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