Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday took a dig at the BJD government that has been in power in Odisha since 2000 and said the party’s rule will expire on June 4 when the election results are announced. Addressing two rallies in a day in the state, which is going to conduct simultaneous Legislative Assembly and Lok Sabha polls, he said the next chief minister will be from the BJP and will be “a son of Odisha or daughter”.
“Once the BJP government is formed, we will fulfill all our promises, this is Modi’s assurance. The BJD’s validity period is June 4 (the day the election results are announced); today is May 6, June 6 “The BJP will decide on the face of its chief minister. On June 10, the BJP chief minister will be sworn in in Bhubaneswar. I am here to invite everyone to the swearing-in ceremony,” he said at the ceremony. Naveen Patnaik said this while addressing a large rally in his hometown Berhampur in Ganjam district.
Addressing the second rally in Nablanpur, the Prime Minister reiterated that “Odisha will get its first chief minister from the BJP. The chief minister will be a son or daughter of Odisha and not an outsider,” he said It is called “Modi Guarantee”. The Prime Minister took note of the growing buzz in Odisha that Tamil Nadu-born 5 T secretary VK Pandian is positioning himself as the heir apparent to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s legacy, values and chairmanship.
Patnaik was quick to respond to the challenge from the BJP’s “star campaigner”, saying in his characteristic terse style: “They (BJP) have been daydreaming for a long time.” Meanwhile, his close aide and 5T secretary VK Pandian said Patnaik will be sworn in as chief minister again on June 9.
Prime Minister Modi and the Chief Minister of Odisha are both campaigning. On March 5, Prime Minister Modi shook hands with Patnaik warmly before the Bharatiya Janata Party-BJP alliance talks and called Patnaik “my friend”, but he did not mention Patnaik by name. Said: “I am not like your chief minister, I will write to you in Odia.”
Targeting the Congress Party and the BJD, he said that despite the rich resources of Odisha, the people of Odisha remain poor because of the crimes committed by the Congress Party and the BJD in the first place. Intensifying his attack, especially against the five-time BJD CM from his home state, he said: “In Odisha, even small BJD leaders have become owners of big houses. Why is the largest labor migration happening in Odisha?” Chief Minister’s District? Why are children dropping out of school? Naveen Patnaik has been winning in Hinjili since 2000 and has filed nominations from Hinjili for the sixth time. Gram is also contesting from the second seat of Kantabangi in Western Odisha.
The BJD and BJP are locked in a pitched battle after alliance talks between the two parties collapsed, with Patnaik aiming for a sixth consecutive term and the saffron party struggling to form its first government in the state. “On June 10, once the BJP chief minister is sworn in, the government will start providing free benefits of up to Rs 5 lakh to the poor, while people above 70 years of age, regardless of caste and social status, will get free benefits. ” In the care of Lord Jagannath’s son Modi,” PM Modi said.
The BJD government also has a popular health insurance scheme that provides treatment worth Rs 5 lakh for men and Rs 10 lakh for women. Patnaik is campaigning from Bhavani Patna in Kalahandi and his speech was brief, not exceeding five minutes.
“Tell me, is the BSKY scheme a good scheme? Is the Mission Shakti scheme a good scheme? Is Laksmi bus good? Is 5T school good? Student Scholarship Scheme, Farmer Kaliya Scheme, Madhubabu Pension Yujana, Is the Puri temple redevelopment plan good? Give your blessings to Naveen Patnaik and cast your vote for the conch symbol,” the Odisha chief minister listed out all the popular poverty alleviation schemes of the state government.
He then took aim at the opposition without naming anyone. “The opposition is lying. These leaders are shedding crocodile tears. You wish the BJD to win the assembly and Lok Sabha elections,” he added.
For the first time in Odisha, BJD leader and former IAS officer VK Panidan refuted the Prime Minister’s claims about a “double-engine” government, “Economies in states under dual-engine governments have collapsed and you will see this in Chhattisgarh, the Center One point. Pandian further said that 95% of students in Odisha receive scholarships, while the proportion in other states is 10-15%. This is the “Navan Engine”. Bless the “Navan Engine” and vote for the conch symbol.
Odisha will conduct simultaneous polls. Polling in Odisha will be held in four phases starting from May 13. Four Lok Sabha constituencies – Kalahandi, Koraput, Nabarangpur and Behanpur – and the 28 assembly constituencies of these constituencies will go to polls on May 13.
Check out the 2024 Lok Sabha election third phase schedule, main candidates and constituencies: news18 website.
