Elections 2024 | Naveen Patnaik keeps post-poll options open

To join hands with either the Congress or the BJP would adversely affect the BJD’s chances during the Odisha assembly polls

Bihar Chief Minister and Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar’s meeting with Odisha Chief Minister and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) President Naveen Patnaik in Bhubaneswar on May 9 has fuelled speculation in political circles.

The one-and-a-half hours luncheon meeting assumes importance since Kumar has recently been meeting leaders of different parties in his attempt to unite the Opposition against the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led alliance ahead of the 2024 general elections.

Patnaik, who remained non-committal to joining opposition parties, said that no discussions were held on any alliances during their meeting. However, a tweet by the JD(U) after the meeting that its leader met Patnaik in his efforts to unite the opposition parties made the motive behind Kumar’s visit clear.

In their efforts to keep the meeting non-political, both leaders stressed that they had a close association and worked as colleagues in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Cabinet. Kumar even recalled his association with Patnaik’s father Biju Patnaik as colleagues of the erstwhile Janata Dal. Naveen Patnaik said they discussed allotment of land in Puri for the Bihar Bhavan for which his government will provide 1.5 acre of land free of cost.

Before meeting Naveen Patnaik, Kumar met Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) National Convenor Arvind Kejriwal, West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress (TMC) President Mamata Banerjee, former Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister and Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav, and Left party leaders. His meeting non-BJP party leaders began after he along with Bihar Deputy Chief Minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav met and discussed Opposition unity with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on April 12. On May 11, Kumar and Yadav are meeting Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar and Shiv Sena chief and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

Apart from working as Union ministers in the Vajpayee government, Naveen Patnaik and Kumar were also chief ministers when their parties were part of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) at different times. However, unlike the JD(U), the BJD has never returned to the NDA fold after it snapped ties with the BJP in Odisha before the 2009 general elections. Naveen Patnaik has been maintaining equidistance from the Congress and the BJP since then.

The BJD had an electoral alliance with the BJP when its traditional rival Congress was the main opposition party in Odisha. Even though the BJP became the principal opposition in the state after the 2019 elections, Patnaik has been successful in maintaining his party’s supremacy in the state. It has been an easy task for him since the BJP and the Congress could never join hands, and a split in the Opposition votes has helped the BJD in elections since 2009.

At the moment, Naveen Patnaik might not be keen to join hands with the opposition parties. This is because the BJD was strong enough to face the BJP and the Congress alone, and there is no benefit for the BJD in joining an alliance. before the Lok Sabha and assembly elections that would be held simultaneously in 2024. That he met with Kumar is an indicator that he is keeping his post-poll options open.

The BJP might be its rival at the state level, but the BJD has been supporting the Narendra Modi government on all important issues since 2019. The regional party did not attend the meeting held in April on social justice convened by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, although the Odisha government is currently undertaking a survey of the social and educational condition of other backward classes. Naveen Patnaik, it would appear, is keeping Modi in good humour to avoid any action from central agencies that are raiding leaders belonging to non-BJP parties.

Banerjee called on the Odisha Chief Minister in March. The meeting was termed a courtesy call. Banerjee too had discussed with him about allotment of land for the construction of Bengal Niwas in Puri for the visitors from her state.

Knowing Naveen Patnaik’s politics, it is clear that he will not align with any opposition group before the 2024 elections, since that will work to his disadvantage at the state level where a triangular contest will help the BJD.

Naveen Patnaik has so far kept his post-poll options open. As he prepares for a sixth consecutive term as Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik is now focussing on better governance to ensure the BJD’s dominance in Odisha to keep both the BJP and the Congress far behind.

(Prafulla Das is a Bhubaneswar-based journalist.)

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own. They do not necessarily reflect the views of DH.