Bhubaneswar, May 16: The Athagarh Assembly constituency is indeed witnessing an intense battle between two prominent candidates: BJD’s Ranendra Pratap Swain and BJP’s Abhay Barik.
Ranendra Pratap Swain, popularly known as Raja Swain, a seven-time MLA, is seeking an eighth term from Athagarh.
He had initially won this seat as a Janata Dal nominee in 1990 and has been consistently holding it since then.
In the last election, he had secured a significant 98,114 votes, defeating BJP’s Brajendra Ray by a substantial margin.
However, this time, Raja Swain,who holds the portfolio of Agriculture , faces challenges due to anti-incumbency sentiments. Critics highlight his failure to provide cold storage facilities for Athagarh’s vegetable-growing farmers, a formidable vote bank
Abhay Barik, who had previously contested as an Independent candidate in the 2019 elections, had secured 10,300 votes.
Now aligned with the BJP, he aims to challenge Raja Swain’s dominance.
Barik is leveraging the Modi guarantee and criticizing the state government’s alleged misrule.
Sudarsan Sahu, representing the Congress, is also in the fray.
His entry into the race adds another dimension to the electoral dynamics.
Both Swain and Barik are actively campaigning, focusing on rural areas. While Swain emphasizes the state government’s development programs and welfare schemes, Barik relies on the BJP’s national appeal. It remains to be seen who will emerge victorious in the ensuing battle
