Basudevpur: With the 2019 general election a few months away, Basudevpur Assembly constituency in Bhadrak is all agog with political excitement.
The constituency assumes importance in the state politics. Leaders of all three major political parties — BJD, BJP and Congress– are on their toes now and tried to project themselves as party nominees. Their banners and posters were found hung and pasted all over the constituency, recharging the political atmosphere in villages.
A kind of poster war has virtually stated well ahead of the elections.
Aspirants have put their photos and prominent leaders of their parties on banners and posters, giving impression to people that they are plunging into electoral arena.
Since 1990, the constituency is being continuously represented by BJD MLA Bijay Shree Routray, who is currently serving the forest and environment minister.
However, this time, Routray will not be in the contest and has already announced his decision. He has clearly dropped hints that his son and general secretary of the district unit of BJD, Bishnubrata Routray is going to contest polls, though the party has not announced his name as BJD candidate.
Hoardings, banners and posters carrying his photos, those of his grandfather ex-Chief Minister Nilamani Routray and his father Bijay Shree are found in market places, bazaars and municipality area.
Congress has not lagged behind in the poster war. Former municipality chairman and president of the district unit of Congress Ashok Das is said to be the front runner in the ticket race.
Ashok has used photos of AIIC president of Rahul Gandhi, ex-AIICC president Sonia Gandhi and PCC chief Niranjan Patnaik in his poster banners. He has tried to signal to people in his constituency that he is going to get the ticket this time. Another youth leader Prakash Jyoti Mahakud is in the race for Congress ticket and is trying to woo voters with his posters, banners and meetings.
However, three leaders are in the race for BJP tickets to contest elections. Senior leader Madhabananda Mallick, BJP state executive member Dinabandhu Patai and vice president of the district unit of BJP Ashok Sahu, even though the saffron party has not yet given indication to any of them.
All the three saffron leaders have tried to project themselves as party nominees, by using photos of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Petroleum, Oil and natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and BJP state president Basant Panda.
PNN