Naveen Patnaik, the Chief Minister of Odisha and leader of the ruling Biju Janata Dal, submitted his nomination papers for the Kantabanji assembly constituency in the Bolangir district of western Odisha on Thursday.
This marks his second nomination, following his candidacy for the Hinjli assembly constituency in the Ganjam district of southern Odisha. Speculation has begun regarding who will vie for the seat vacated by Patnaik. One prominent name being discussed is V.K. Pandian, a Tamil Nadu IAS officer who joined the BJD and became a key campaigner for the party.
On Thursday, Patnaik travelled to Tusra aerodrome in Bolangir district and then flew by helicopter to Titlagarh sub divisional town to file his nomination papers at the sub-collector’s office. In the 2019 elections, the Congress secured victory in the Kantabanji seat, with the BJP coming in second.
Current MLA Santosh Singh Saluja of the Congress filed his nomination papers for Kantabanji, while the BJP has nominated Laxman Bag.
In an effort to counter the BJP’s ambitions of replicating their success in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in western Odisha, the BJD earlier announced that Patnaik would contest from Kantabanji for the assembly elections. He is the sole BJD leader contesting from two seats.
In 2019, despite Patnaik contesting from the Bijepur assembly seat within the Bargarh Lok Sabha constituency, the BJP clinched five Lok Sabha seats in western Odisha—Bolangir, Kalahandi, Bargarh, Sambalpur, and Sundergarh.
