As Odisha bids adieu to the 24-year reign of BJD leader Naveen Patnaik, all eyes are now on who will be the next chief minister of Odisha. Though the BJP campaigned without a chief minister face, instead focusing on the issue of Odia Asmita (pride), a few names are in contention.
Former Union Minister and tribal leader Jual Oram, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra and party's national vice-president Baijayant Panda are in the race for the top post. However, all four were contending in Lok Sabha elections and not in Assembly polls. While that should not have been an issue in any other circumstance, the fact that BJP has few MPs this time to go for another gamble might be an issue.
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The party has already made it clear that it will nominate its Chief Minister on June 6 and an "Odisha-born, Odia-talking CM" will take oath on June 10.
Jual Oram's name was doing the rounds much before the results were announced. Oram himself said though he does not aspire to be the chief minister, he wouldn't turn down the job if offered. "If I am entrusted with the job, I will faithfully discharge my duties as the chief minister. Though I do not aspire to be the CM, I won’t turn down the job if offered. There are plenty of other capable leaders in our party who could be considered for the CM’s post. However, we will abide by whatever our party leadership decides," Oram added.
Oram, a tribal leader who defeated Indian hockey captain Dilip Tirkey in Sundargarh Lok Sabha constituency, has already said this would be his last election as he wants to pass the baton to the next generation of leaders. "I have contested Lok Sabha elections eight times and Assembly elections twice. I will remain active in politics but do not want to be part of electoral politics anymore. It takes a lot of hard work to contest elections. Since I am a senior leader, I have been given a lot of responsibilities. So, I get overburdened," said Oram.
The next prominent name in the list is Union Minister and Sambalpur MP Dharmendra Pradhan. Pradhan has already flown to Delhi to attend the NDA meeting and his prior stint as the Cabinet Minister in the outgoing government could come in handy. He is also a strong critic of Naveen Patnaik-led regime and an advocate of Odiya Asmita in the face of rumours that Patnaik was under the sway of former bureaucrat turned BJD politician V K Pandian.
As for Patra, though his stint as the BJP national spokesperson helped him gain national visibility, his gaffe on Lord Jagannath was a blot, after his critics accused him of demeaning the faith of crores of Jagannatha bhaktas and Odias across the world.
Baijayant Panda, BJP's national vice-president, is also an eminent candidate for the post. He is a graduate of Michigan Technological University with a background in Engineering and Management and had a successful corporate career before entering politics.
Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi, BJP State President Manmohan Samal, former Union Minister and MP Pratap Sarangi are other names that could be considered.
But, then going by BJP's track record, it could pull another Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and opt for an MLA who is not in the limelight.
