The President of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Naveen Patnaik, on Monday accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party of "betrayal" and alleged they were now engaging in "candidate chori" (stealing candidates) ahead of the forthcoming Nuapada by-election. Patnaik was addressing his first public meeting since recovering from an illness, hitting the campaign trail to canvass support for BJD candidate Snehanini Chhuria in Nuapada’s Komna block.
"All of you know that the BJD has been betrayed. Those who indulged in ‘vote chori’ and formed the government earlier have now started ‘candidate chori’," Patnaik claimed.
The BJD chief’s comments were specifically aimed at Jay Dholakia, the son of the late BJD MLA Rajendra Dholakia. Jay Dholakia defected to the BJP before the by-election and is now standing as the saffron party's candidate. The by-election was called following the death of Rajendra Dholakia on September 8, with voting scheduled for November 11.
Urging the public to deliver a strong response to those involved in "vote chori and candidate chori," the former five-term Chief Minister appealed to electors to vote for the conch symbol — the BJD’s election emblem — on polling day.
During his ten-minute speech, Patnaik also raised questions over the BJP government’s record in Odisha. "During the last sixteen months, the BJP government has only focused on publicity, not on development. They are heroes in publicity, but zero in work. Development activities across the state have come to a complete halt," he asserted.
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