Bhubaneswar, Jan 2: Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha constituency will be a battle of prestige for both the ruling BJD and opposition BJP in upcoming elections.
In 2019, the BJP took away the Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha seat from the ruling BJD. BJP candidate Aparajita Sarangi won the election with a narrow margin of 13839 votes by defeating BJD’s nominee Arup Patnaik.
From 1998 to 2014, BJD had been winning from Bhubaneswar parliamentary constituency for 5 consecutive times. Prasanna Patasani continuously won from here. But he was dropped in the 2019 election. BJD announced former IPS Arup Patnaik as the party candidate at the last moment but he failed to succeed. It was a shock and surprise for the ruling party.
Now, BJD has been working hard to regain the prestigious constituency in the upcoming election. Much before the election, BJD has announced that Shreemyee Mishra, the party observer for Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha would be the party nominee in the upcoming electon. Shreemayee has also been seen in various party programs in 7 assembly segments of Lok Sabha seat for a few months.
On the other hand, Current BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi is sure to contest again. It is believed that there is no other aspirant to be the BJP MP candidate here. She has already started a public relations campaign in the field.
If Srimayee Mishra becomes BJD nominee in the coming election, then there will be a face-to-face battle between the two women candidates for the first time in the Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha constituency.
Aparajita, who was the Municipal Commissioner of Bhubaneswar for a long time, had personal relations in the capital. Also, she was a familiar face in some assembly segments as she worked as Khordha district collector.
On the other hand, long before the election, BJD very strategically has chosen a woman face Shreemayee Mishra who was also well-known media face and party activist.
So, the state capital of Bhubaneswar will see another interesting battle in the coming days.
