Nuapada: The high-octane campaign for the Nuapada assembly by-election concluded on Sunday evening, marking the end of aggressive canvassing by the state’s three major political parties. The by-poll, scheduled for November 11, has turned into a major prestige battle between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD).
The BJP, led by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, banked heavily on the ‘Double-Engine Government’ narrative, emphasizing its sixteen-month governance record and promising accelerated development for the western Odisha district.
The chief minister held multiple roadshows and public meetings, including a historic visit to the remote, often-neglected Sunabeda region. The party’s strategy centers around its candidate Jay Dholakia, the son of the late BJD MLA, aiming to capitalize on both a sympathy factor and a local family connection. The BJP campaign relentlessly accused the BJD of neglecting Nuapada during its two decades in power.
Countering the ruling party’s thrust, the BJD fielded former minister Snehangini Chhuria, with BJD President Naveen Patnaik personally joining the campaign trail. Shri Patnaik focused on his party’s established welfare schemes, its grassroots network, and the promise of a ‘new Nuapada’. The BJD campaign adopted an aggressive tone, leveling accusations of ‘betrayal’ and ‘candidate theft’ against the BJP following Jay Dholakia’s defection, a charge that set the emotional tenor of the final weeks of campaigning.
The Congress party, despite being overshadowed by the two main contenders, maintained a strong presence through its candidate, Ghasiram Majhi. A veteran tribal leader, Majhi has a consistent personal vote base in the constituency. The party’s focus has been on core issues of local neglect, migration, and the need for immediate action on irrigation and employment. The Congress also released a specific manifesto for Nuapada, promising agro-based industries, streamlining of the MGNREGS scheme, and providing permanent government jobs to curb distress migration from the area.
Key issues dominating the electoral discourse included the historic neglect of the tribal belt, the lack of robust irrigation facilities, and persistent large-scale seasonal migration of laborers. Both the BJP and the BJD have responded with major development announcements; the ruling party’s Chief Minister Shri Majhi had previously unveiled development projects worth an estimated $131 million for the district prior to the election notification.
With the contest widely viewed as too close to call, the result on November 14 will serve as the first major referendum on the BJP government’s popularity and the BJD’s resilience in opposition.
The Nuapada by-election is largely being described in political circles as a triangular contest, though the intense mobilization efforts have created the perception of a direct face-off between the two major parties, BJP and BJD.