Congress leaders in Ganjam district join BJD

Indian National Congress leaders of Ganjam district and thousands of their followers, joined the ruling Biju Janata Dal, in a move that threatened to make the coastal Odisha district ‘Congress-mukt.’

On Wednesday, former Union Minister Chandrasekhar Sahu, the party’s fomer district head Bhagaban Gantayat, Bikram Panda an ex-AICC member and 11 corporators from Naveen Patnaik’s own constituency joined the BJD.

The latter chose to make a statement of it, organising a massive event and stealing some of the attention form BJP president Amit Shah’s visit to Odisha.

At the ‘Misrana Parba’, the Congressmen and reportedly 20,000 of their supporters swore allegiance to Patnaik’s BJD. Sahu a Minister of State for Rural Development during the Congress-led UPA-I Government, and his colleagues, had recently resigned from the Congress which has been faced with leadership crisis.

While the AICC has only just announced a change in its state-in-charge, it is yet to announce a new state president. The delay may have already cost the party that once ruled the state considerable damage.

The events of Wednesday, say political analysts, pretty much sums up how 2019 will be fought. Patnaik holding on to the coastal districts, that constitute the chunk of assembly seats, and BJP making a go of breaking his hold through western Odisha. Critical to this dynamic will be the Congress loyal share of votes, but only and if it gets in order before 2019.