In a quantum leap, the BJP’s Lok Sabha tally in Odisha has gone up from one in 2014 to eight in 2019.
The party not only made major gains in western Odisha, its traditional stronghold – winning as many as five seats (Sundergarh, Bolangir, Bargarh, Sambalpur and Kalahandi) – it also made inroads in the coastal belt for the first time, wresting the Bhubaneswar and Balasore seats from Naveen Patnaik-led Biju Janata Dal. It also registered an emphatic victory in Mayurbhanj.
However, the enthusiasm shown by voters for the party in the Lok Sabha was not reflected in the assembly elections which were held simultaneously in the state. Though the number of BJP’s assembly seats went up to 23 from 10 last time, the results were far from satisfying for the party which had boasted about forming the government in the state during the long-drawn election campaign which saw its top leaders ridiculing and taunting BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik and even comparing his government to a burnt transformer.
BJP president Amit Shah, who campaigned extensively in the state, had set his party the target of winning more than 120 assembly seats in Odisha. In that perspective, the assembly outcome has been an embarrassment for the party.