2 political heavyweights face off in a battle of narratives in Odisha
The elections to choose a parliamentary lawmaker from Sambalpur and legislators from the seven assembly segments will be held on May 25
The electoral contest in Sambalpur is not just a fight to win a Lok Sabha seat and seven assembly constituencies that are part of it. It is emblematic of the larger battle for power in Odisha, playing out as a fight between two formidable opponents and the scramble to change the narrative and sentiment on the ground.
The elections to choose a parliamentary lawmaker from Sambalpur and legislators from the seven assembly segments will be held on May 25.
Sambalpur on the banks of the Mahanadi river in western Odisha is a six-hour journey from Bhubaneswar. The political churn taking place in the capital is mirrored on the ground in Sambalpur, which draws its name from a local deity, goddess Samleswari.
“People in this part of the state harbour a notion of being different, if not superior, from their counterparts in the coastal and the southern regions. This time, there is little that sets the mood on the ground apart from what is happening in Bhubaneswar or Cuttack. There is a clear divide between people supporting the Bharatiya Janata Party and Biju Janata Dal,” said Ashok Sahu, a local trader.
What has added an element of “thrill” to the election, he said, was the contest between one of BJP’s most recognised faces in the state, union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan and the BJD’s organising secretary, Pranab Das, for the Lok Sabha seat. “Both are tall leaders with their clout and support on the ground. And both are seen as contenders for a top post in the state. So, it is a clash of two big leaders just as there is between (chief minister) Naveen Patnaik and (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi,” Sahu said.
The Congress has fielded Nagendra Pradhan, who won the seat in 2014 on a BJD ticket. In 2019, the parliamentary seat was won by the BJP’s Nitesh Ganga Deb.
Many residents who have supported the BJD are now open to giving the BJP a chance, primarily for two reasons, Sahu said. “The first is that people are upset that VK Pandian is in the driver’s seat. And the second is the growing popularity of Prime minister Narendra Modi,” he said.
Just as the BJP raised the issue of Odia Asmita (pride) by alleging that an outsider, Pandian, a trusted aide of chief minister Patnaik, is seeking to take control of the state, in Samablpur, too, the party tried to raise the issue of “outsider” Das trying to wrest control of the seat. “But it backfired. Das, who is from Jajpur, was quick to point out that Pradhan was born in Talcher (which is in Angul, a three-hour drive from Samabalpur). So that issue is now laid to rest,” he laughed.
Poll promises
The contest is now driven by promises. Pradhan’s road map for the region includes a fillip to the handloom sector that Sambalpur is famous for, setting up a food processing industry and enhancing the minimum support price for farm produce.
“Our manifesto for the state clearly lists our vision for the state. And this will also be reflected in Sambalpur. It is an agrarian society; we will boost rural economy. The process of buying produce will be simplified,” Pradhan said.
Slamming the BJD for “neglecting” the state and its people, he said, had the party focussed on welfarism in the past 24 years, there would have been no shortfall of amenities. “Why is there no water in the villages to drink? This is in the basin of the Mahanadi and yet the villages are parched. Why are there no doctors and poorly managed primary health care centres. Why are teachers’ posts empty?” he asked.
In his speeches and outreach, the BJP leader focuses on Sambalpur’s potential to emerge as an agro-food processing cluster, and a hub for horticulture, fisheries and animal husbandry. “There are five university clusters here, we have an IIM (Indian Institute of Management), engineering and medical colleges, we plan to create a knowledge hub here. This will be a knowledge and tech-driven economy and we are looking to create a new ecosystem of startups, logistics and service industry,” he said.
Migration, a key challenge the state faces in the absence of jobs and employment avenues, is all too prevalent in Samabalpur. The local textile industry and the presence of steel plants has not generated enough jobs to allow the youth to stay closer home. And the BJP promises to change that. “We will create a global workplace. We have the talent pool for it. Work should come here. There is scope for work from home and we need to reverse migration,” Pradhan said.
BJD’s counter
The BJD, however, is taking the battle to the BJP camp, alleging that after 10 years of being in the Modi cabinet, Pradhan has not been able to give an account of the jobs created and the avenues for livelihood.
Das, who is popularly known as Bobby, wants Pradhan to explain why Sambalpur could not get funds under corporate social responsibility while he helmed the ministry of petroleum and natural gas as the longest serving minister. He questioned the delay in infrastructure development, pointing out how National Highway 55, the main link between Bhubaneswar and Sambalpur, is being constructed at a snail’s pace.
In his speeches, The BJD candidate claims the dereliction in completing the work is responsible for hundreds of deaths every year. Das also lashed out at the BJP for what he claims is the doublespeak on the issue of welfare of tribal communities. The imposition of GST on collection of tendu leaves is cited as an example of that. These leaves are a major source of livelihood for tribal communities.
The BJD also accuses the BJP of fanning communal fire. On April 12 last year, dozens of people were injured, and several houses and shops burnt when violence broke out following a stone pelting incident during a Hanuman Jayanti procession. Both sides blamed the other for perpetrating the violence.
“It was a classic case of BJP trying to fan the flames,” a local BJD leader said, declining to be named. “They want to create a fissure in society by introducing the communal element.”
But Pradhan had a quick rebuttal. “Who attacked the yatra? Where was the administration and law and order? In this zilla (district), a cabinet minister (health minister Naba Kishore Das) was gunned down by a policeman,” he said. “Will they (BJD) teach us what peace loving means?”
Shadow on assembly polls
The incident has, however, cast a shadow on the assembly polls in Sambalpur. Residents complain that both the MP, Nitesh Ganga Deb, and the legislator, Jayanarayan Mishra, were conspicuous by their absence.
“A bike rally was organised by the Hanuman Jayanti Samanyvaya Samiti, which had some BJP and VHP (Vishva Hindu Parishad) members too. It was attacked by stone pelters, there was violence and several of our young men were imprisoned. The BJP MP and MLA did nothing to bail them out,” said area resident Umesh Sahu, a trader. “This was despite them being supporters of the party.”
The BJP had won three of the seven assembly constituencies of Sambalpur, Rengali and Deogarh, while Chhendipada, Rairakhol, Kuchinda and Athmalik were bagged by the BJD.
The BJP has doubled outreach to win over SC and ST voters that make up for about 37% of the electorate, a local BJP leader said. “The votes of these groups are divided, but with the party’s pitch of double engine and Modi’s guarantees, we are hopeful of retaining a lion’s share of votes from both the segments,” the leader said, wishing to remain unnamed.
Bigger role for contestants
As the election draws close, there is curiosity about the fate of Pradhan and Das in their respective parties. Both are considered front-runners for top state positions.
“Pradhan is fighting the Lok Sabha, but there seems to be consensus on the ground that if the party wins the state election, he will be the chief ministerial candidate. There is also a notion that he should be given a chance as he is slated to be inducted as union minister if the BJP forms the government for the third time at the Centre and that could bring in change and development in Sambalpur,” said Sandip Digal, an entrepreneur.
Having steered the party’s election campaign in states such as Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka, Pradhan’s candidacy from Sambalpur is also perceived as a plan to further strengthen the party’s hold in the western region of the state and give a fillip to its performance in the coastal belt as well.
Similar sentiments are expressed for Das, who is considered close to Patnaik. “His name was counted among the leaders who were expected to succeed Patnaik. The fact that the BJD chose him to take on Pradhan is an indication that he is being groomed for a top position in the state. He is putting on a good fight,” said the BJD leader cited earlier.