ସର୍ବଦା କହିଆସିଛି ସବୁ କିଛି ମହାପ୍ରଭୁ ଶ୍ରୀ ଜଗନ୍ନାଥଙ୍କ ଇଛା | ତାଙ୍କ ଇଛା ଅନୁସାରେ ପତ୍ର ବି ହଲେନି | ଆଉ ଗୋଟେ କଥା, ଜନତାଙ୍କ ମତକୁ ସର୍ବଦା ସଂମ୍ମାନ ଦେବା ଉଚିତ | pic.twitter.com/aMvpahg2c9
— Kartik Pandian (@PandianOdisha) June 9, 2024
In a surprising move, VK Pandian, the trusted aide of former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, announced his retirement from active politics on Sunday. Pandian’s decision comes on the heels of significant electoral setbacks for the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) in both the Odisha Assembly and Lok Sabha elections.
Pandian, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 2000 batch, served as Patnaik’s private secretary for over two decades. In 2023, he took voluntary retirement from the bureaucracy to join the BJD, marking a significant shift in his career. His retirement from politics, announced shortly after the party’s electoral defeat, adds to the turbulent period for the BJD.
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The announcement follows Naveen Patnaik’s statement denying Pandian as his successor, emphasizing that the people of Odisha would decide their leader. This statement, coupled with the recent electoral losses, has cast uncertainty over the party’s future leadership.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ended the BJD’s 24-year rule in Odisha, capitalizing on anti-incumbency sentiments against Naveen Patnaik. The BJP’s campaign, focused on themes like Odia’s pride and aspirations under the decisive leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, resonated with the electorate. The BJP secured 78 seats in the 147-seat assembly, while the BJD won 51, Congress 14, and CPM one, with three Independents completing the tally. Patnaik himself lost one of his two contested seats, Kantabanji, but retained Hinjili, marking his sixth consecutive win.
The BJP’s triumph extended to the Lok Sabha elections, where they secured an unprecedented 20 out of 21 seats in Odisha, a dramatic increase from their previous tally of eight seats in 2019. The BJD, which had won 12 seats in the 2019 elections, failed to secure a single seat this time. The Congress managed to retain Koraput, the only seat not won by the BJP.
These results have plunged the BJD, which has dominated Odisha’s political landscape for nearly 25 years under Patnaik, into an existential crisis. Naveen Patnaik, who entered politics following his father Biju Patnaik’s demise in 1997, has been a central figure in Odisha’s politics, serving first as a Union minister from 1998 to 1999 and then as Chief Minister.
Pandian’s retirement marks the end of an era in Odisha politics. His close association with Patnaik and his role in the administration have been instrumental in shaping the state’s political narrative. As the BJD grapples with its electoral losses and searches for new leadership, Pandian’s departure adds another layer of complexity to the party’s future trajectory.
