Bhubaneswar: If the

Narendra Modi

government beat the anti-incumbency wave and rode back to power, Chief Minister

Naveen Patnaik

did so even more formidably in

Odisha

.

Beating four terms of anti-incumbency and the Modi wave, the Patnaik-led BJD came to power with a nearly 2% increase in vote share, securing 113 seats in the 147-member assembly –– just four short of its 2014 tally. The BJP may have risen to the second spot but it did not make much of a dent into Patnaik’s vote bank, especially among women voters.

Those who’ve known him over the past two decades say he has a sharp political instinct and is known for his meticulous planning – “act in haste, repent at leisure” is a favourite warning he gives his colleagues. “This is a man who has not taken a single holiday in 22 years (ever since Patnaik joined politics). His extraordinary commitment to the people of Odisha is without match,” said Puri MP Pinaki Misra. It is his prescient reading of the country’s mood that steered the BJD to avoid the Modi-naysayers. The BJD’s previous term began with corruption allegations, an agrarian crisis and dissent from within the party. Seeing the BJD lose its grip after the 2017 rural polls, Patnaik took firm control of the political narrative. Well-publicised events were spun out one after another such as the star-studded Hockey World Cup and the investment meet that had the country’s top industrialists speaking highly of Patnaik.

The party president, who hadn’t campaigned for the panchayat polls, reached out directly to every block through video conference. The ‘Ama Gaon Ama Vikas’ (our village, our development) programme created new ward committees, roping in panchayat representatives and grassroots-level BJD workers. Peetha – a governance-at-your doorstep programme – allowed villagers to express their grievances in their neighbourhood and this helped douse any resentment unaddressed by local representatives.

For a jet-setting socialite, far removed from the realities of Odisha which is notoriously poor and ravaged by cyclones, Patnaik’s unflinching focus was on “improving the lot of the poor”. This resulted in many welfare schemes that covered every milestone in the lives of the poor, who even get a state-sponsored funeral. Critics may complain about the government’s over-dependence on these schemes as the state’s finances are precariously stretched. But it clearly delivered political dividends.

Patnaik, accused of usurping all the credit for centrally-assisted schemes like Rs 1 a kilo rice and resisting Modi government’s pet schemes, launched his own free health coverage, extended the state coverage to those left out of the central food security scheme, and pre-empted the Centre with its own farm subsidy scheme right before the polls. Key to Patnaik’s success have been Odisha’s women, especially the 70-lakh members of self-help group under ‘Mission Shakti’ programme. Their loyalty made Patnaik nominate women to a third of the LS seats – five of the six women who stood for polls are now headed to Parliament.

2019 has been the toughest battle Patnaik has fought. During the four-phase election campaign, PM Modi addressed 10 rallies, Amit Shah made 18 visits, and there were 47 visits from Union ministers and BJP CMs. On the other hand, Patnaik, BJD’s only star campaigner, used the extended schedule to his advantage, crisscrossing the state with a simple slogan – “if you are happy with me, vote for the BJD.”

The tone this time had been bitter, with Patnaik who retains a clean image, being at the receiving end of direct allegations of graft against him by the BJP. Even Modi –– Patnaik’s main opponent in this bipolar election ––was harsher than usual. But a closer look at the legislative assembly of Kendrapara from where Modi prematurely bid Patnaik adieu, shows that the BJD not only won the assembly seat but its MP won even more handsomely from here. “This, despite a weak candidate. It’s a great example of the strength of the BJD cadre at the grassroots level that swung this assembly seat for us,” said a BJD leader.

Patnaik and the BJD have already begun work for the urban body elections. With BJP as the primary opposition, Patnaik may want “constructive cooperation with Centre,” but with BJP at its heels, he is unlikely to rest on his laurels.


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