Following fruitless discussions over a pre-election alliance and seat distribution with BJD, Odisha's BJP has stated it may field candidates for all 147 Assembly and 21 Parliamentary seats. State President of BJP, Manmohan Samal, declared, "No conversations regarding the alliance took place and BJP will contest the elections independently." Samal returned to Bhubaneswar from the national capital on Friday evening with other senior party leaders.
Manmohan Samal Speaks Out
Samal shared, "We were in Delhi to discuss our preparations for the upcoming Assembly and Parliamentary elections with central party leaders. No dialogue emerged relating to coalition or seat-sharing during the meeting." Samal also expressed confidence that the Odisha BJP would triumph in both elections on its own.
BJD's Silent Response
BJD leaders VK Pandian and Pranab Prakash Das, also returned to Bhubaneswar. They had flown to Delhi on Thursday evening to discuss possible alliances before the election with BJP's central leaders. Upon returning, they stayed silent on talks such as seat-sharing.
Disagreement Over Seat Allocation
However, sources indicate that the seat-sharing dialogue between Odisha's ruling BJD and the opposing BJP faces obstacles. Though both parties seemed to agree on an alliance pre-election, seat distribution was a point of contention. According to BJP insiders, BJD asked to contest over 100 seats but BJP did not agree with the proposal.
As the outgoing Assembly stands, the regional party holds 114 seats, and initially, it demanded 112 seats during negotiations with BJP. A senior BJP leader remarked, "BJD is demanding nearly 75% of Assembly seats, which is unacceptable to us."
How Many Seats is BJP Contesting?
On the flip side, BJP had sought 14 seats in Odisha's 21 Parliamentary slots, which BJD rejected. In the 2019 elections, BJD won 12 seats, whereas BJP secured eight. A senior BJD leader mentioned, "It would be suicidal for us to contest fewer than 10 Parliamentary seats." Under Samal's leadership, Odisha's BJP leaders spent three days in Delhi and held marathon meetings with central leaders at the residence of Vijay Pal Singh Tomar, state election in-charge and Rajya Sabha MP.
Just two days ago, after attending a meeting at Tomar's residence, former Union Minister and BJP MP Juel Oram mentioned that there were discussions with BJD on forming an alliance, but nothing was finalized. Meanwhile, Prithviraj Harichandan, the General Secretary of Odisha BJP, said, "No decision regarding the alliance was made until this afternoon." Despite a faction of Odisha BJP leaders opposing an alliance with BJD, the dynamic changed a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the state on March 5th, which sparked heightened speculation about coalition talks in the state's political sphere.
In 2000, BJD-BJP Competed Together for the First Time
Meanwhile, BJD indicated its readiness to do all it takes, including forming alliances for the welfare of the state and its citizens. The parties shared an 11-year coalition from 1998 to 2009 and jointly contested three Parliamentary and two Assembly elections. When the Janata Dal split in 1998, Patnaik formed his own party and joined the Vajpayee-led BJP government as the Steel and Mines Minister. They first competed together in the Assembly elections of 2000 and then again in 2004.
Previously, the seat-sharing ratio between BJD and BJP was 4:3, where BJD contested 84 Assembly and 12 Parliamentary seats, while BJP competed for 63 Assembly and 9 Parliamentary seats. The coalition triumphed in the 1998 general elections with 48.7% vote share, winning 17 out of 21 seats. The coalition improved its tally to 19 seats in 1999, which slightly dropped to 18 in 2004.
