The people of Odisha have decided to submit their fate in the BJP governance for the upcoming 5 years with a decisive victory.
In its historic win ending a 24 year old BJD rule, BJP has secured 78 seats out of the 147 in the Odisha Legislative assembly in contrast to BJD’s 51 seats. The congress improved its tally from 9 seats in the previous elections to 14 this year. The CPI secured a single seat and three independent candidates have emerged victorious as well. On Wednesday, one of the independent candidates joined BJP taking its count to 79. The remaining two are expected to follow suit.
A meeting will be conducted soon to elect a new CM from the pool of victorious BJP MLAs after the BJP Parliamentary board has appointed observers. “The parliamentary board will take a call on this. An Odia CM, who believes in Odisha’s language and culture, will be sworn in on June 10,” BJP’s state unit president Manmohan Samal told reporters.
Also read: BJP secures victory in Surat
Who will be Odisha’s upcoming CM ?
In the Chief Minister of Odisha race, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who has won the seat from Sambalpur, is likely the forerunner. He has served as the Union minister for a decade and as election in charge in the states of Karnataka, Uttrakhand, Jharkhand and Odisha.
Entire Odisha wishes dynamic , energetic and innovative Dharmendra Pradhan Ji to be the new CM of Odisha. #CMofOdisha
@dpradhanbjp Ji pic.twitter.com/mPvdyEH9e8— Goura (मोदी का परिवार) (@goura4bjp) June 6, 2024
The next prominent contender is Jual Oram, a single term MLA and a five time MP. He was the first Union Minister for Tribal Affairs, appointed under the Atal Bihari Vajpayee leadership in 1999. Oram has won the seat from Sundargarh constituency and does not wish to hold the position of the CM but if entrusted with the job, he “won’t turn down” the offer.
Gaining nationwide recognition as a BJP Spokesperson, Sambit Patra has earned himself a spot in the CM race by winning the Puri seat. This was an unexpected win for Patra, especially after his gaffe on Lord Jagannath that sparked a controversy leading critics to accuse Patra of demeaning the faith of crores of Jagannatha bhaktas and Odias across the world.
The final name popping up is Baijayant Panda, BJP’s national Vice President and former confidante of BJP supremo Naveen Patnaik. Panda is a two time Rajya Sabha MP and a Lok Sabha MP for once. In the 2024 elections, he bagged the Kendrapara seat by defeating BJD’s Anshuman Mohanty by a margin of over 66,000 votes.
