BJD turns 27; what has keep it in power in Odisha

As the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) observed its 27 years of formation, thousands of party leaders and workers across the state on Tuesday (December 26) took pledge to build a 'Nabin' (new) Odisha and celebrated the occasion as the Foundation Day.

On the occasion, party’s founding president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik offered floral tributes at the statue of his father and former chief minister Biju Patnaik, in whose name the regional party was named.

The party leaders and workers at the BJD state headquarters 'Sankha Bhavan' took oath rededicating themselves to work selflessly for the state and its people, said BJD vice president Debi Prasad Mishra.

"I take pride in being a disciplined member of the BJD. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik is the architect of Odisha's development and I will act as a soldier to take the state's developments to new heights. I will fight for the legitimate demands of the state. I take the pledge to work for building a prosperous, empowered and self-respecting new Odisha," the members read out at the function.

Behind BJD and Naveen’s long reign

Interestingly, the BJD, possibly is the only Indian party which has won consecutive assembly elections since its inception in 1997. The party has been in power in Odisha since 2000 and its leader Naveen Patnaik has been the chief minister for five consecutive terms. The party enjoys a brute majority of 114 in the 147-seat assembly and has 12 of the 21 Parliamentary seats from the state.

Political analysts attribute the powerful sway of the Patnaik-helmed party in Odisha to a variety of reasons – from the party president and chief minister’s iron grip on the party as well as the state’s governance to his populist schemes which has made him a darling of the masses.

Known for keeping a hawk’s eye on party affairs, Patnaik has efficiently eliminated political rivals within the party at the hint of a coup while keeping party MLAs and MPs at an arm’s distance and in line. It is a fact well-known that ahead of the Parliament session, BJD MPs are told what line to take in their respective Houses while the answers to the questions they are expected to give are decided by the chief minister’s office in advance.

Patanaik’s no-tolerance policy against corruption and strict action against corrupt bureaucrats and officials has also been a key factor in keeping his party in power.

What has ticked for the BJD the most is the government’s policies, specially tailored for women, the rural poor, farmers, the elderly and the youth.

For instance, the Mission Shakti programme, started by the BJD government has made lakhs of women self-reliant in the state. At present Odisha has over seven million women working in six lakh women Self-Help Groups (SHGs).

Similarly, while the Biju Patnaik government had introduced 33 per cent reservation for women in the Panchayati Raj, the BJP government under Naveen Patnaik increased it to 50 per cent.

Recently, the BJD government announced a slew of policies related to agriculture, transportation, water supply, and youth empowerment ahead of the 2024 assembly and Lok Sabha elections.

The most-attractive of them is the Ama Odisha Nabin Odisha programme under which the government plans to provide ₹50 lakh each to all the 6,794 gram panchayats in the state for overall development of the state.

Odia pride

Analysts say Patnaik’s acumen to cash in on ‘Odia pride’ and his efforts to put Odisha, which was once just known as an economically-deprived Indian state, on the world map by hosting international sporting events, has worked in his and his party’s favour.

In 2019, the BJD had fought the elections on the promise to bring change and preserve ‘Odia pride’ amid demands for special category status to Odisha and protests against the sharing of Mahanadi waters with Chhattisgarh. As promised, the party restored ‘Odia pride’ by hosting the Men’s Hockey World Cup-2018 in Bhubaneshwar.

The Odisha government has also played a pivotal role in providing patronage to the sport, paving the way for international wins by teams. In 2018, when Hockey India was facing a rough patch after the withdrawal of Sahara Group as the sponsor, it was Patnaik who assured to back national teams for the next five years.

It was with this backing that the Indian men’s hockey team was said to have clinched the gold at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, qualifying for the Paris Olympics 2024 in the process.

Political analysts and BJD leaders agree that Patnaik’s pro-people attitude and his efforts on the front, which so far have not been replicated by any political rivals, have kept his party at the forefront.

Political strategies

The BJD’s changing political strategies have also been ascribed to its long reign in Odisha. According to analysts, Patnaik has re-devised political strategies in tandem with a political situation or crisis.

For instance, soon after it was founded, the BJD – a breakaway faction of the Janata Dal – had joined hands with the BJP for the Lok Sabha polls to keep the Congress at bay. While the BJD won a majority seats in the assembly elections in 2000 and 2004 in alliance with the BJP, it chose to part ways with the saffron party following the 2008 Kandhamal riots ahead of the 2009 assembly and Lok Sabha elections.

Political observers also say that, from being a reluctant politician to an astute statesman with simple needs, Patnaik over the years has built the image for himself that has appealed to the voters.