The incumbent Biju Janata Dal (BJD) won the Jharsuguda by-election in Odisha whose outcome was declared along with the result of Karnataka assembly polls today. Dipali Das (26), the party’s candidate, also increased the winning margin over the total of her late father Naba Kishore Das in the 2019 general election.
The main opposition party in the state, the Bharatiya Janata Party, came in second place and increased its vote share from 2019, while the Congress suffered an embarrassing loss.
She defeated BJP’s Tankadhara Tripathy (41) by an astounding margin of 48,721 votes, winning 1,07,198 (60.93%) of the 1,75,616 votes cast. He garnered 58,477 votes (33.24%), whereas Tarun Pandey (45) of the Congress party lost his deposit and received only 4,496 votes (2.56%).
Naveen Patnaik, the chief minister of Odisha and BJD supremo also congratulated her on the tremendous triumph. He had also campaigned for her during the election. He thanked the residents of the constituency for their support and mentioned that it enhances the commitment to elevate Odisha to the forefront of development.
“The victory is because of the love and blessings of the people of Jharsuguda. Since the CM has already initiated the development process, it will be expedited further. I will now have a huge responsibility and I’m ready to take it. I will also make every effort to fulfil my late father’s dreams,” Dipali Das stated while talking to the media.
The seat had been held by her father Naba Kishore Das since 2009 until he was shot dead on January 29 of this year, which prompted the by-election. The former health and family welfare minister was killed by Gopal Krushna Das, an Assistant Sub-Inspector of Police.
Prior to the 2019 elections, he defected to the BJD and won the seat by 45,699 votes, garnering 55.97% of the vote. He had previously won twice as a Congress MLA in 2009 and 2014 before switching his political affiliation.
Dipali Das has reportedly won by a significant margin owing to her deceased father’s extensive network, his nomination of her daughter as a candidate, the BJD’s robust organisational foundation and well-oiled election apparatus, as well as the CM’s effective campaigning.
The BJP also invested heavily in the by-election based on its election performance in 2019, when it obtained 30.04% of the vote. Senior party figures, such as state party president Manmohan Samal, camped out in the region for around two weeks to direct the party’s campaign.
Talking to the media, the BJP state chief asserted that although they had experienced a little setback, they will eventually fight back and become a viable alternative to the BJD, which is now in power.
“By-elections generally favour the ruling dispensation. So, it can’t be compared to the general elections. Our workers fought with dedication in Jharsuguda. We’ll review the results,” he remarked.
The Congress, which was barely seen on the ground throughout the campaign, is still having a hard time competing in state politics. No prominent official other than Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Sarat Pattanayak and a small group of his supporters were visible throughout the election drive in Jharsuguda.
The grand old party, which received more than 10% of the vote in 2019, was plagued by factionalism and was unable to retain the deposit in the by-election. Its candidates have now lost deposits in six of the eight by-elections held in the state since 2019.