Naveen Further Glitters Bhubaneswar : 20/September/2013 At least 13-years in power, still Naveen Patnaik’s popularity is growing. And there is no fade in BJD Supremo’s sparkle clean image despite allegations of misrule and corruption. This is evident from the results of the Urban Polls, counting of which was made today. The ruling BJD captured at least 45 ULBs of the total 66 bodies while rival parties like Congress and BJP were far behind. Congress got only 12 ULBs while BJP had to be satisfied with only one ULB at Rairangpur in Mayurbhanj district. The BJD’s bright performance was mostly due to Naveen, who despite all odds toured at least 50 plus towns and sought votes for his party men and women. The 2013 Urban Polls was in other word an acid test for Naveen as he has already remained Chief Minister for three consecutive times. There seems to be no decline in Naveen’s popularity even as he formed Government trice in a row. The Urban Polls were important for Naveen and other leaders as they were considered as the “semi-final” for the 2014 general elections. While leaders of opposition parties took it lightly, Naveen was a different personality who never ignored his political rivals. Besides being an indicator for the 2014 general elections, the ruling BJD for the first time went to polls without Rajya Sabha MP Pyarimohan Mohapatra, who was considered as the chief strategist of the party Supremo. Pyarimohan, after being out of the BJD on charge of attempting to topple Naveen’s Government on 29 May, 2012, also gave a call to the people during urban polls to vote against Naveen and his party. Therefore despite all out efforts from Pyarimohan and rival political parties, Naveen swept the elections and once again proved that he was the most popular leader in the state. By this election, Naveen has also sent shock waves for the main opposition Congress. The BJD Supremo ensured that the Congress candidates lost the polls in the home district of OPCC President Jaydev Jena in Keonjhar. On the other hand, Naveen’s home turf remained intact and his party bagged Berhampur Municipal Corporation besides 15 ULBs of the total 17 ULBs in Ganjam district. Ganjam is the home turf of the BJD Supremo. This is not all, besides holding its fort in the coastal and southern regions of the state; the ruling party also increased its strength. While BJD had captured 40 ULBs in 2008 elections, this time its stake increased to 45. Interestingly, some prominent leaders and Minister’s influence in their respective areas seems diminished as their candidates failed to form council. While the BJD had been unable to form council in Energy Minister Arun Sahoo’s Nayagarh, similar is the case for Steel and Mines Minister R K Singh in Angul. Forest and Environment Minister Bijayshree Routray also faced the same fate as the Congress candidates captured most of the wards in Basudebpur ULB in Bhadrakh district. The party’s senior MLA and former Minister Pradeep Maharathy also failed to deliver as the Congress candidates captured Pipili ULB.
Posted on: Sat, 21 Sep 2013 12:19:02 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015