Bhubaneswar: With the bonafide voters residing under Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) limits to exercise their right to franchise for electing representatives to the civic body March 24, Congress has failed in fielding party candidates in as many as 25 wards.
Even as the voters are to directly elect a Mayor to BMC for the first time, obviously, the chief post bears a lot of importance to all major political parties.
Especially, political observers, parties, candidates and common people have fixed their eyes on upcoming poll to BMC.
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At least 12 political parties have fielded respective candidates to the post of Mayor in BMC. Debates are on, as to which party will be able to grab the mayoral seat. The winnability of a mayoral candidate depends on pre-poll preparedness of a political party and the influence of its projected Corporator candidates as well. While both BJD and BJP have fielded candidates in all the 67 wards, Congress fielded in 42 alone.
In such a given situation, the winnability of Congress party’s mayoral candidate appears to be less, some political analysts opined.
Congress was the first political party in Odisha to have announced the Mayor candidate name March 4 for poll to the civic body. The Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) has announced Madhusmita Acharya as the party’s candidate for the post of Mayor in BMC ahead of elections to urban local bodies (ULBs). Later the same day, it also declared names of 30 corporator candidates, in the first phase.
In the second phase, Congress added 13 more names to the final list. After former corporator Pratap Routray and his wife Jyoshnamayi left BJD and joined Congress, the latter party fielded her from ward-19. However, subsequently, the lady has withdrawn her nomination.
Bhubaneswar district unit of Congress party had earlier recommended three names such as Rashmi Mohapatra, Subhadra Mishra and Madhusmita Acharya to its selection committee, which in turn has approved Madhusmita Acharya as its candidate for the post.
“Senior Congress leader and Jatani MLA Suresh Kumar Routray had officially made the announcement that Madhusmita Acharya is the candidate for BMC Mayor from Congress,” a local leader stated.
On being contacted, Madhusmita said, “Since election to the BMC mayoral post is now a direct one, people will vote according to their own sweet will. If necessity so arises then my party may support the independent candidates in wards which have gone unrepresented.”
It is pertinent to mention here that Madhusmita is former president of Kamala Nehru Women’s College in Bhubaneswar and also a young entrepreneur. She is a sportsperson and Odissi dancer too. The party projected candidate happens to be the daughter-in-law of former Congress MLA late Kangali Panda. She was actively assisting her father-in-law in poll management when he was contesting polls.
On the other hand, with massive victory in 765 Zilla Parishad seats in the recent three-tier rural elections, the ruling BJD has appeared to be mightier than other political parties with regard to polls to BMC.
Besides, BJP has targeted many dissidents from the BJD, who have filed their nominations as independent corporator candidates. Both BJD and BJP are more interested to obtain maximum possible votes in wards which have gone unrepresented by the Congress party.
The State Election Commission (SEC)-Odisha earlier announced that filing of nominations should be completed between March 2 to March 7, scrutiny March 9, withdrawal of nominations up to March 14, voting March 24, counting of votes March 26, election of vice-chairperson April 7 and election of deputy mayor coming April 8, respectively.
Around 14.26 lakh voters will cast their votes at 1,407 booths under 168 wards in three Municipal Corporations namely CMC of Cuttack and BMC of Bhubaneswar, including the BeMC of Berhampur.
PNN