Balasore: Following his recent expression of discontent over being denied a ticket from the Balasore Lok Sabha constituency, BJP leader Kharabela Swain announced on Monday that he would retract his statement regarding contesting independently in the upcoming Odisha elections. Swain’s decision comes shortly after the BJP renominated its incumbent MP, Pratap Sarangi, for the Balasore seat, a move that initially prompted Swain to consider an independent candidacy.
In a press conference, Swain softened his stance and instead proposed adjustments to the BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate list. Given his successful track record of winning from Balasore three times, Swain urged the party to nominate him as the MP candidate for the constituency. He suggested that Sarangi, if interested in contesting from a parliamentary constituency, could be shifted to the Kandhamal Lok Sabha seat.
Swain also scrutinized the BJP’s nominee for the Kandhamal seat, Sukanta Kumar Panigrahy, citing his past electoral performance. Swain highlighted Panigrahy’s previous third-place finish in the 2014 general elections and emphasized his own ability to secure a significantly higher number of votes in the 2019 elections.
Expressing confidence in Sarangi’s electoral prospects, Swain asserted that Sarangi could effectively challenge the incumbent BJD candidate, Achyuta Samanta, in Kandhamal. He pledged his support for Sarangi’s campaign, anticipating the influence of the “Modi wave” in securing victory.
Additionally, Swain proposed the option for Sarangi to contest from the Nilagiri Assembly seat, considering the recent defection of the sitting MLA, Sukanta Kumar Nayak, to the BJD. Swain assured his full commitment to ensuring Sarangi’s success if given the MP ticket from Balasore, characterizing it as a mutually beneficial outcome for both himself and Sarangi.
