Bhubaneswar: The election of BJP’s Ashwini Vaishnaw to the Rajya Sabha from Odisha appears to be a foregone conclusion, with the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) extending its support to his nomination. This development mirrors the support extended by the BJD during Vaishnaw’s election to the Upper House in 2019, highlighting a continuation of their cooperative stance. The announcement came as the BJP officially renominated Vaishnaw earlier in the day, thereby resolving any lingering suspense over the third candidate for the Rajya Sabha seats from Odisha. Debashish Samantray and Subhasish Kuntia of the BJD had already filed their nomination papers for the other two seats from the state.
The BJD’s decision to back Vaishnaw’s candidature was framed within the context of the state’s interest in the development of railways and telecommunications, two crucial portfolios held by Vaishnaw as Union Minister for Railways, Communication, and Information Technology. With the BJD’s support, Vaishnaw’s election to the Rajya Sabha in 2024 seems assured, reinforcing the collaborative approach between the regional and national parties in Odisha’s political landscape.
Despite the BJD’s dominance in the Odisha Assembly, where it holds the necessary strength to secure victory in all three vacant Rajya Sabha seats, the BJP’s reliance on its support underscores the latter’s relatively smaller presence with only 22 MLAs. Nevertheless, the strategic alliance between the BJD and BJP reflects a pragmatic approach aimed at advancing the state’s interests at the national level.
