Malkangiri: The Chitrakonda Assembly constituency in Malkangiri district consists of Balimela, Khairaput, Kudumulugumma and Maithili blocks and 15 panchayats of Korukunda block.
Chitrakonda has 73 hyper-sensitive booths and the authorities have decided to install CCTVs in one of them.
The BJD, the BJP and the Congress have geared up their campaigns in Chitrakonda.
The Congress has fielded Laxmipriya Nayak. Balaraju Kope, who was lobbying for the Congress ticket has now filed nomination as an Independent. Balaraju is a Zilla Parishad member and a youth leader of the area. As Mathili is a Congress bastion, it is believed that party votes from there will go for Balaraju.
Former Assembly Deputy Speaker Prahallad Dora who was in the run for the BJP ticket, recently held a press conference at Malkangiri, and issued some adverse statements against the party’s official candidate Podu Majhi.
Many BJP workers were present at the press meet supporting Dora. Observers say that most votes of the BJP in the Mathili area will go either to the BJD or the Congress.
After the construction of the Gurupriya Setu and three more hanging bridges in the seven panchayats of the former ‘cut-off areas’ (now renamed as ‘Swabhiman Anchal’) in the Chitrakonda Assembly constituency, voters there have moved towards the BJD. As a result many votes from this region can go for BJD candidate Purnachandra Baka.
The residents of four panchayats of this region are still cut off due to lack of proper roads and they are forced to travel by boats.
Earlier, Swabhiman Anchal was a Congress bastion. Congress candidate Gangadhar Madhi was elected four times as MLA from Chitrakonda and his daughter-in-law Mamata Madhi was also elected twice from the seat.
Even now some voters here are loyal to the Congress. DCC president Gobinda Patra and party candidate Laxmipriya Nayak are trying hard to win Swabhiman Anchal votes.
Ghenu Muduli who was lobbying for a ticket from the Congress has filed as a candidate of the Samata Kranti Dal after he failed to get the Congress ticket. He is now posing a threat to the Congress.
Political observers think that he might be able to bag votes in Korukonda, Tarlakota, Kambeda and Potrel. These areas were once Congress fortresses and might create trouble for its candidate Laxmipriya Nayak now.
BJD candidate Purnachandra Baka had resigned from his job last month and is now contesting after getting the party ticket. Till the finalisation of Purnachandra’s candidature former BJD MLA Dambaru Sisa was hopeful of getting the party ticket. Many of his supporters are now unhappy with the candidature of Purnachandra.
Dambaru later endorsed the candidature of Purnachandra and is now campaigning for him. Purnachandra campaigned in Mathili, Kudumulugumma, Khairaput, Chitrakonda and Swabhiman Anchal.
Political analysts say that the absence of internal bickering in the BJD might prove an advantage for him.
Bahujan Samaj Party candidate Sanatan Kabasi might bag some votes in Chitrakonda.
The Maoists have called for a boycott of the elections which could pose a threat to the polls. There are also fears that the threat might bring down the rate of polling in Chitrakonda.
The constituency has 1,88,914 voters, of which 90,549 are males and 98,355 are females. There are 10 other voters. New voters number 2,174 here. There are 1,696 physically challenged voters in this constituency.
PNN