Bhubaneswar, Mar 19 (PTI) The ruling BJD of Odisha has started the process of selecting candidates for the Lok Sabha and assembly elections, as the process for a pre-poll alliance with the BJP is in limbo.
Chief Minister and BJD president Naveen Patnaik also asked his party leaders to pay all attention to their constituencies instead of staying put in the state capital and lobbying for tickets, a party insider said.
“We will start selecting our candidates without waiting for the BJP’s decision (on alliance). We will see what will happen later,” a senior BJD leader said.
A BJP team from Odisha has been camping at the national capital holding meetings with central leaders over seat sharing with Biju Janata Dal (BJD) for the past two days.
Elections to the Lok Sabha and the assembly in the state will be held in four phases on May 13, 20 25 and June 1.
The BJD has directed the leaders to inform the party authorities of their day-to-day activities in constituencies daily.
For this purpose, Patnaik has opened two monitoring cells, one at his residence ‘Naveen Niwas’ and another at ‘Sankha Bhawan’, the state party headquarters, to keep a tab on the activities of the leaders in their constituencies.
The leaders were told to send photographs of their activities in constituencies.
Patnaik on Monday held a meeting with party leaders from Puri and Kendrapara Lok Sabha constituencies.
On Monday, the BJP Odisha unit president went to Delhi with shortlisted names of candidates for all the 21 Lok Sabha and 147 assembly segments, party sources said.
The BJD and the BJP were in alliance for 11 years between 1998 and 2009 and fought three Lok Sabha and two Assembly elections together. PTI AAM NN
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