Elections for the Lok Sabha: BJD of Naveen Patnaik to Run for 13 Seats, BJP for 8: Report

There are many rumors about a potential reunion between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the governing Biju Janata Dal (BJD), headed by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and state assembly elections in Odisha. After an 11-year political alliance, the BJD broke up relations with the BJP-led NDA in 2009 over differences during seat-sharing discussions.

Sources inside the BJD have reportedly stated that the party may think about giving the BJP 13 Lok Sabha seats while keeping eight for itself, according to an India Today story. However, it has been stated that the BJP is targeting 55 seats in the Odisha assembly elections as well as nine Lok Sabha seats. At the moment, the BJP has 23 MLAs in the state legislature and eight seats in the Lok Sabha.

The BJD and BJP’s possible reunion might have a big influence on Odisha’s political climate and how the next elections are shaped. It seems that both parties are considering the prospect of reuniting, even if no official declaration has been made as of yet.

In a three-hour meeting, BJD leaders discuss forming an alliance with the BJP.
A major event was that BJD leaders met for three hours at Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s official house, Naveen Niwas in Bhubaneswar. Concurrently, in New Delhi, representatives of the Odisha BJP met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and party leader JP Nadda to discuss election-related issues, such as the potential for an alliance with the BJD, according to several media sources.

Debi Prasad Mishra, an MLA for the BJD and vice president, attested to the fact that discussions about possible cooperation with the BJP were held at the meeting.

Senior leaders had lengthy deliberations about the strategy for the next Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha elections, according to a press statement jointly released by Debi Mishra and BJD senior general secretary Arun Kumar Sahoo.