BJP nominates Suryabanshi Suraj as its candidate for Odisha’s Dhamnagar by-poll
By Amar Barik
Bhadrak: With Dhamnagar bypoll inching closer, the BJP on Sunday declared Suryabanshi Suraj as its candidate. Suraj is the son of former MLA late Bishnu Sethi who passed away on September 19 following protracted illness.
The ruling BJD and Congress have not yet declared their candidates for the November 3 by poll.
According to sources, three major political parties, BJP, BJD and Congress have drafted blueprints to win in the by-elections.
The BJP national president, JP Nadda, had visited Bishnu Sethi’s family at Dhamnagar on September 30. While interacting with the party workers there, he had exhorted the party workers to work towards “fulfilling the dreams” of the departed leaders, dropping hints about the nomination of Suryabanshi Suraj as the party candidate.
The Congress has formed a three-member team comprising Jayadev Jena, Niranjan Patnaik and Prasad Harichandan. The trio visited Dhamnagar and submitted a report to Congress President Sonia Gandhi about the candidate to be fielded for Dhamnagar by-polls.
The ruling BJD, meanwhile, has exuded confidence to win the by-poll with a majority.
“We have won six assembly by-polls held after 2019. We are pretty sure to retain our track record of winning by-elections,” said BJD spokesperson Prashant Muduli.
Dhamnagar constituency has a little over 2 lakh voters, including 40,000 Muslim electors. The ruling BJD on Sunday held a meeting of in the Muslim dominated area in the constituency on the occasion of Prophet Mohammed’s birthday, apparently to retain their faith in the party.
“The minority communities in the state have always stood by the BJD. This time also, they will vote in a large number for our party,” BJD Rajya Sabha member Muna Khan said.
In 2019, the BJP candidate Bishnu Sethi had defeated the ruling BJD’s Rajendra Das by a margin of 4,625 votes in the 2019 elections.
“We are taking this battle seriously. We’ll surely defend the seat. People are disappointed with the present government headed by chief minister Naveen Patnaik. In villages, the supporters of the BJP are being extended all benefits of the government. On the other hand, the people supporting BJP are not denied such opportunities, but also often harassed,” said Manmohan Samal, a former minister and senior BJP leader.
