Bhubaneswar: The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) and State Police have made elaborate arrangements for the smooth conduct of last phase of election to be held in six Lok Sabha and 42 Assembly seats tomorrow.
Six parliamentary constituencies – Mayurbhanj, Balasore, Bhadrak, Jajpur, Kendrapara and Jagatsinghpur – along with 42 assembly seats coming under these Lok Sabha segments will go for polls in the fourth phase. The fate of 460 MLA and MP candidates will be sealed in this phase.
The electoral fortunes of 15 Lok Sabha members and 105 MLAs have already been sealed in the EVMs during the polling in the last three phases held in the State on May 13, 20, and 25.
A total of 99.55 lakh voters from nine districts, mostly from coastal Odisha, including 48.69 lakh females, will exercise their franchise in 10,882 polling booths. Twenty percent of these booths are declared critical, and another 20 percent are model booths, all amidst tight security cover.
Around 36,000 security personnel including 126 companies of central armed police force (CAPF) and 86 platoons of Odisha armed police and 20,500 civil police personnel to be deployed for this phase, said DGP Arun Sarangi.
Voting will be held at 10,882 polling booths at 8,752 locations in 9 districts of Odisha on Saturday. At least 21 per cent of the total booths have been identified as sensitive or critical booths and one to half of section CAPF will be there in all sensitive booths, Sarangi said here on Friday.
He informed that four young IPS officers of sub-divisional police officer (SDPO) rank have been mobilized for Jagatsinghpur, Kendrapara, Mayurbhanj, Bhadrak and Balasore districts while 42 Assembly Supervising Officers in the rank of additional SP with striking force.
Shri Sarangi said 84 DSPs will supervise the law and order (two for each assembly segment) with striking force while 199 sector officers in the rank of inspector with striking force will also be deployed on poll duty.
One to half section CAPF in all sensitive booths. The central paramilitary forces will be deployed in 2280 critical/ vulnerable booths. Additional 130 mobile units by CAPF company commander or deputy commandant will be engaged for the poll, he informed.
Besides, 843 mobile parties, 255 flying squad teams and 255 static surveillance teams have been deployed for the twin elections to Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly, he said.
The DGP said that 21 inter-state border check posts with CCTV surveillance and 60 intra-state border check posts have been set up to check illegal flow of cash, arms, liquor and other substances.
In the 2019 elections, the ruling BJD had a clean sweep, winning four of the six Lok Sabha seats and 34 of the 42 Assembly seats, while the opposition BJP bagged two Lok Sabha and eight Assembly seats.
However, political observers said this time it would be a difficult task for the ruling BJD to retain its supremacy in the wake of a high-voltage and aggressive campaign launched by the BJP under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Party President J P Nadda, besides a host of central leaders including the Chief Ministers of Assam and Uttar Pradesh.
The three major political parties – BJD, BJP, and the Congress – have fielded their candidates in all 42 Assembly seats. The BJP has fielded its candidates in 31 Assembly seats.
In six Lok Sabha seats, both the BJD and the BJP have fielded their candidates in all six seats, while the Congress has put up candidates in five Lok Sabha seats, leaving the Mayurbhanj (ST) seat for the JMM.
Although all the Lok Sabha and Assembly seats will witness a multi-corner contest, the real battle for the ballots will be mostly confined to the ruling BJD and BJP, while the Congress will give a tough fight in Balasore Lok Sabha and a couple of Assembly seats
The heavyweights whose electoral fortunes will be decided in this phase of election are BJP State President Manmohan Samal (Chandbali), Assembly Speaker Pramila Mallik (Binjharpur), and four Ministers Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak (Mahakalpada), Pratap Deb (Aul), Pritiranjan Gharai (Sukinda), and Tusharkanti Behera (Kakatpur).
Other prominent figures in the fray are former Congress President Niranjan Pattnaik (Bhandaripokhari), former BJD Minister and Congress turncoat Ganeshwar Behera (Kendrapara-SC), veteran BJD leader and former Minister Prafulla Samal (Bhadrak), and Government Chief Whip Prashant Muduli (Jagatsinghpur).
This phase of the campaign in Odisha was marked by acrimonious exchanges between the ruling BJD and the Opposition BJP. BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik accompanied by party leader V K Pandian, promised free electricity, extension of BSKY health card for all sections of people and pension to Mission Shakti women members to woo the voters.
The BJP backed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Home Minister Amit Shah besides, a host of central leaders including UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Assam Chief Minister Himant Biswa Sarma, mounted an attack on Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and BJD Government.