New Delhi: Over 99.61 lakh voters will resolve the destiny of 460 candidates in six Lok Sabha seats and 42 meeting segments in Odisha’s coastal area on Saturday, amid sizzling and humid climate situations. Officers point out a straight combat between the ruling BJD and the opposition BJP in Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, and Jagatsinghpur Lok Sabha seats, with voting scheduled from 7 am to six pm.
On this fourth section of simultaneous polls, 66 candidates are contesting the Lok Sabha seats, whereas 394 candidates vie for the meeting segments. Within the 2019 elections, the BJP gained Mayurbhanj and Balasore, whereas the BJD secured Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara, and Jagatsinghpur, together with 34 of the 42 meeting segments.
A complete of fifty.88 lakh males, 48.72 lakh girls, and 687 transgender individuals are eligible to vote in 10,882 polling cubicles throughout Odisha’s coastal area. Given the new and humid situations, particular preparations have been made at polling stations to supply necessities to voters, based on Odisha’s Chief Electoral Officer, N B Dhal, information company PTI reported.
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DGP Arun Kumar Sarangi reported that 36,000 safety personnel, together with 125 corporations of central forces, have been deployed throughout the six constituencies, as per PTI. About 2,280 polling cubicles have been recognized as essential, necessitating the deployment of central forces to make sure free and honest elections.
Key candidates on this section embody Odisha Meeting Speaker Pramila Mallik, Authorities Chief Whip Prashant Kumar Mudili, and a number of other Odisha ministers reminiscent of Sudam Marndi, Ashwini Patra, Pritiranjan Ghadai, Atanu S Nayak, Pratap Deb, and T Okay Behera. Moreover, 4 sitting MPs- Pratap Sarangi (Balasore), Manjula Mandal (Bhadrak), Sarmistha Sethi (Jajpur), and Rajashree Mallick (Jagatsinghpur)—are contesting of their respective seats.
The BJD has modified its candidate in Kendrapara, whereas the BJP has fielded a brand new candidate for the Mayurbhanj seat. Jharkhand Mukti Morcha’s Odisha unit president, Anjani Soren, is contesting from each Mayurbhanj and the Saraskana meeting section.
BJP state president Manmohan Samal is working for the Chandbali meeting constituency in Bhadrak Lok Sabha, and former OPCC president Niranjan Patnaik is contesting from Bhandaripokhari meeting seat.
Soren is seen as a key contender in Mayurbhanj, having secured over 1 lakh votes within the 2019 elections. The BJD has nominated Odisha minister and former JMM chief Sudam Marndi for the Mayurbhanj seat, whereas the BJP’s candidate is sitting Rairangpur MLA Naba Charan Majhi.
In Balasore, a triangular contest is predicted because the Congress has fielded former Union minister Srikant Jena. The BJD’s candidate is Lekhashree Samantsinghar, a former Odisha BJP vice-president, who’s up in opposition to sitting BJP MP and former Union minister Pratap Sarangi.
In Bhadrak, BJD’s Manju Lata Mandal and BJP’s Avimanyu Sethi are dealing with off as soon as extra. Mandal beforehand gained the seat by a margin of 28,803 votes, and the BJD has retained the Bhadrak seat since 1998. In Kendrapara, BJP has fielded its nationwide vice-president and three-time MP Baijayant Panda, who’s competing in opposition to BJD’s Anshuman Mohanty.
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Odisha Elections 2024: BJD, BJP’s Excessive Octane Campaigning
The marketing campaign has seen heavyweights like Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Dwelling Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and BJP president J P Nadda, amongst others, rallying for votes. PM Modi held rallies in key constituencies together with Mayurbhanj, Balasore, and Kendrapara to spice up the BJP’s prospects.
Chief Ministers of BJP-ruled states, Himanta Biswa Sarma, Vishnu Dev Sai and Bhajan Lal, and former Tripura CM Biplab Deb have additionally campaigned for get together candidates. Union minister Smruti Irani and actor Hema Malini have additionally campaigned for BJP nominees.
CM Naveen Patnaik and his aide V Okay Pandian have campaigned for BJD candidates, whereas Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and AICC president Mallikarjun Kharge addressed a rally in Balasore and Bhadrak Lok Sabha seats.