Manmohan Samal replaces Samir Mohanty as BJP Odisha president
Times of India | 24 March 2023
BHUBANESWAR: Ahead of next year’s general elections, the BJP on Thursday appointed former minister Manmohan Samal (64) as the party’s state president as it looks to wrest control of Odisha from the BJD, which has been in power since 2000. Samal would replace Samir Mohanty, whose three-year tenure had come to an end on January 16.
The appointment of Samal, who has already served two stints as party president, came as a surprise for many amid speculations about possible extension of Mohanty’s tenure till the end of the 2024 elections.
Sources said Samal was picked up for playing a key role in ensuring the party’s victory in the high-octane Dhamnagar byelection. Victory for BJP’s Suryabanshi Suraj in Dhamnagar halted BJD’s undefeated bypoll run since 2009. Samal was elected to the assembly from Dhamnagar seat in Bhadrak district in 2004 and subsequently became a minister in the BJD-BJP coalition government.
Samal’s appointment is also seen as part of a major organisational rejig that started following the selection of MLA Jaynarayan Mishra as the leader of opposition in the assembly in July 2022 and strategist Sunil Bansal as Odisha prabhari (in-charge) a month later. Mishra has been turning the heat on the BJD on several fronts in the assembly.
"Samal is a highly experienced leader. He showed his leadership quality and organisational acumen in the party. Our roadmap is ready for the 2024 elections," Mishra said.
The appointment of Samal, who is an OBC leader from coastal Odisha, comes amid the BJD’s attempt to woo the backward classes. The BJD will conduct a backward class survey from May 1 to 27, a prerequisite to ensure reservation for the backward class citizens. "Samal is our OBC face and a popular leader. He will give a checkmate to the BJD, which is trying to play the OBC card and caste politics ahead of the elections," BJP legislator Mohan Majhi said.
BJP, which has a strong hold in western Odisha, hopes to penetrate into the coastal and other parts under Samal’s leadership. The BJP not only bettered its tally in Odisha assembly from 10 seats in 2014 to 23 in 2019, but also replaced Congress as the principal opposition in the house. The BJP won eight Lok Sabha seats in Odisha, up from just one in 2014.
Samal said the BJP would form the government in 2024 with a thumping majority. "People will vote for a change in Odisha in 2024. People in the state have realised that the BJP is the only alternative to give them a good governance. BJP will fight against the misrule of the BJD and rising corruption," Samal said.