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In a blow to the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) days ahead of the simultaneous Lok Sabha and assembly elections in the state, popular Odia actor-turned-politician Arindam Roy joined the BJP on Friday.
Roy claimed that he was sidelined by the party and not allowed to meet Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik despite several attempts. Speaking to ANI on Friday, the actor-turned-politician said, "While I was with the BJD, I tried several times to meet Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik. However, due to party politics, I couldn't get the opportunity to meet him." "I have joined the BJP inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and will work hard to strengthen the party in the state," he added. Roy, along with other BJD leaders, joined the BJP in the presence of the party's state president Manmohan Samal at the party headquarters in Bhubaneswar on Friday. Earlier, on Friday, BJP national vice president M Chuba Ao accused the BJD administration in Odisha of falsely claiming credit for central government schemes and misleading people in the state by presenting them as initiatives of the state government. Speaking to ANI, M Chuba Ao said, "I was on a visit to Odisha during which I participated in Labharthi Sampark Abhiyan in Keonjhar. Unfortunately, the BJD government in the state is rebranding central schemes and passing them off as state government initiatives." Commending Prime Minister Narendra Modi's vision for the country, the former BJD leader said, "PM Modi's outlook extends beyond the next five years, as he has envisioned the country's development and progress till the year 2047," Chuba Ao said. Odisha has 21 parliamentary constituencies. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) got the maximum number of seats, followed by the BJP and the Congress. The BJD won 12 seats, the BJP finished a close second at 8 seats and the Congress bagged just a lone seat. The state has 147 Assembly constituencies. In the last assembly polls, which was held simultaneously with the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the BJD swept the state, winning 113 seats. The BJP came a distant second at 23 seats, followed by the Congress with 9, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) with 1, and an independent candidate with another seat. (ANI)
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