Jajpur: The Congress Party has virtually given a walkover to the ruling BJD in the coming civic poll of Jajpur town in Jajpur district as Congress candidates withdrew their candidatures from six wards out of 18 wards on Thursday in favour of BJD candidates.
Due to withdrawal of rival party candidates from the race, BJD candidates were declared unopposed in five wards.
The Congress candidates from ward no- 9 Sadhana Moharana, Rabindra Narayan Mishra from ward no- 10 Kabita Das from ward no- 3 Mayadhar Kandi from ward no- 4 , Kanakalata Sahoo from ward no- 5 and a Congress backed independent candidate Bijayananda Behera from ward no- 4 have withdrawn their nomination papers on Thursday as a result
BJD candidates Swadeshi Patnaik, Barsarani Mehera,, Bhabaprasad Das, Sandhya Das, and Kanakalata Das have been elected unopposed . After much dilly-dallying, the Congress candidates dropped their plan to contest in the civic poll, paving the way for BJD candidates to get elected unanimously
"It is not a fact that we didn't find suitable candidates. The ruling party leaders put pressure on some to pull out. Town congress committee finalized the list of the candidates for 18 wards. But the BJD leaders of Jajpur used money and muscle powers and terrorized some of the Congress candidates to withdraw their nomination papers. We will make this as a major issue in the poll”, said Srinath Mishra the president of the district unit of the Congress Party.
But BJD leader refuted the charges. "Congress Party has no base in Jajpur. They forced some persons to contest the poll. But six Congress candidates decided not to contest the poll and withdrew their nomination papers”, said Naresh Chandra Mohanty the president of the district unit of BJD.
The unopposed elected BJD candidates Sandhya Das is the aunty of BJD leader and MLA of Jajpur Pranab Kumar Das where as Bhabaprakash Das is the son of Sandhya Das. BJD is projecting Sandhya Das as the chairperson of the municipality, added Mohanty.
Though the Congress leaders of the district were reportedly at odds over backing the BJD candidates in this civic poll , but they still hope that the Congress candidates in other 12 wards will win the
election .
12 Congress candidates are still in the race in 12 wards and we hope that all the Congress candidates will win the election. Some Congress candidates succumbed to the money and muscle power of the BJD
leaders of the district. Large scale corruption in the state and nepotism in the district will be the major poll plank in this civic election in Jajpur”, said Matlub Ali a senior Congress leader and former minister who is in charge of Congress Party‘s affairs in Jajpur district.
Source: Odishabook.com
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