Subhechcha Ganguly 
The argument over the Biju Janata Dal (BJDdominating )’s victory in the Padampur byelection has been reignited for both supporters and opponents of the party’s dominance in Odisha.The BJP went into reflection mode to consider the reasons for their failure when Barsha Singh Bariha, a BJD candidate and the daughter of the late Bijay Ranjan Singh Bariha, defeated Pradip Purohit by a margin of more than 42,000 votes.However, if we look at the other side, the win by BJD, which suffered a big loss in the just finished Dhamnagar bypoll, has multiple potential reasons.
Naveen Patnaik campaigned himself
To avoid making the same error, party supremo and chief minister Naveen Patnaik personally supported his candidate in Padampur. This move by Patnaik, to use his charming character is thought to be a crucial play that drew votes. This time, the senior and junior BJD leaders worked together to develop a rock-solid plan to handle the election campaign.
In all 319 booths, the campaign strategy was created from the grassroot level
Last but not least, the State government showered Padampur with promises and initiatives, including a Rs. 488 crore package, guarantees that Padampur will become a separate district, and an upgrade of Paikmal to a NAC. In addition, Naveen Patnaik promised to build a new electrical grid sub-station in Jharabandha, provide financial aid to the Kulta and Meher communities, and give farmers input subsidies.
Addressing a presser, top BJD leader, Prasanna Acharya stated, “We were with the people, and would remain with them forever. People have faith in the promises made by BJD and CM Naveen Patnaik. And every party member, including the MP, MLAs, and Ministers, carried out the plan almost flawlessly.
The BJD leadership permitted its leaders from the same region to take centre stage and play crucial roles in directing the campaign because the seat belonged to the Western Odisha region. The Dhamnagar fiasco, where local leaders were allegedly demoted to make room for the purported celebrity leaders from nearby districts, seems to have served as a lesson for the party
The voters were unaffected by the anti-BJD smears, and no other tactic appeared to be effective either. The leaders and workers failed to carry out the measures outlined by the poll strategists on the ground. It is also possible that there were anti-party activities.And terming Barsha as anti-tribal seemed to have boomeranged at BJP too. I accept the defeat, declared BJP candidate Pradip Purohit after the loss. However, I demand that Naveen Patnaik honour the promises he made to the residents of Padampur.
