Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s longtime opponent Bijoy Mohapatra lost the Patkura assembly constituency election to the ruling BJD’s Savitri Agarwalla by more than 17,600 votes on Wednesday.
The Patkura verdict brings an end to the two-decade-long battle between Naveen Patnaik and 69-year-old Mohapatra, his principal bête noire.
Mohapatra, a former minister and senior BJP leader, lost by 17,655 votes. Agarwalla secured 95,162 votes and Mohapatra got 77,507. Congress candidate Jayant Mohanty lost his security deposit as he polled a little more than 2,000 votes. The win in Patkura took BJD’s tally in the 147-member Odisha Assembly to 113.
The election for the Patkura assembly constituency in Kendrapara district was held after the Biju Janata Dal’s candidate and former minister Bed Prakash Agarwalla died on April 20, days before the constituency went to polls.
The BJD then chose his widow Savitri Agarwalla as the party’s candidate. Though polls were to be held on May 19, they were deferred after Cyclone Fani swept through several parts of coastal Odisha.
“Had he made it to the assembly, Mohapatra would have made life difficult for the government. But after his loss, Mohapatra may not have any political currency in the next election,” said political analyst Rabi Das.