Bargarh Lok Sabha Seat: BJP Riding High on Modi Wave, Task Cut Out for BJD

Bargarh is one of the 21 Lok Sabha constituencies in Odisha. It comprises seven legislative assembly segments, all held by the state’s ruling Biju Janata Dal — Padampur, Bijepur, Bargarh, Attabira, Batli, Brajarajnagar, and Jharsuguda.

Suresh Pujari of the Bharatiya Janata Party is the incumbent MP from Bargarh. The BJP though has given the ticket this time to Pradip Purohit, while Parineeta Mishra from the BJD is the other top contender here.

Polling for this Lok Sabha seat in Odisha will be held on May 20 in the fifth phase of the ongoing general elections. The votes will be counted on June 4.

Political dynamics

1. The BJP registered a surprise victory from the Bargarh Lok Sabha constituency in 2019 when Suresh Pujari defeated BJD stalwart Prasanna Acharya by a margin of over 63,000 votes. What was particularly noteworthy in the previous election here was that the voters made a clear distinction between the state and parliamentary polls. While the BJD swept all seven assembly segments in 2019, its MP candidate lost to the BJP, as voters chose to support Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s bid for re-election.
2. Since the constituency came into being in 2008, neither the BJD nor the BJP have repeated MP candidates from Bargarh. This time too, both parties have changed their candidates. The BJP has fielded Pradip Purohit, while giving incumbent MP Suresh Pujari an assembly ticket from the state. Meanwhile, in the BJD camp, senior leader Prasanna Acharya is said to have refused offers to fight from the parliamentary constituency against the BJP again, in what appears to be a sign of which way the wind is blowing here.
3. Interestingly, the BJP won in 2019 despite Suresh Pujari largely being seen as a political greenhorn with no significant experience in electoral politics. Despite this, he defeated a fairly senior leader of the BJD, which indicated that the saffron party had amassed an organic voter base for itself here in Bargarh that did not take the MP candidate into much consideration and voted mostly for Prime Minister Modi.
4. Now, five years later, the saffron camp hopes a similar pro-incumbency wave in favour of PM Modi will help it retain Bargarh. BJP’s Pradip Purohit is a known face in Bargarh, who has been in the news for his repeated attacks on the BJD government in Odisha and efficient organisational skills. Purohit, as part of his campaign, is highlighting the various development and welfare programmes being implemented by the Modi government.
5. Ground inputs suggest that the battle for Bargarh has largely been won by the BJP already. This is because the electorate has made up its mind on who it has to vote for – both in parliamentary as well as state elections. In Bargarh, voters are expected to favour the BJP in parliamentary polls, while voting for the BJD as far as the assembly election is concerned. In fact, the BJP appears to be giving a tough fight to the BJD even in the state assembly polls, largely due to the fact that a considerable number of voters also want to see change at the local and state levels. The BJD, they say, has had it too good for too long.
6. A ‘Modi wave’ is sweeping Bargarh. The Prime Minister has come to command a lot of influence among voters here, whose single biggest motivation for supporting the BJP is Narendra Modi himself. Despite the state BJD government renaming central schemes and PM Modi’s many initiatives, voters have made up their minds and are clear they will support the BJP. In such a scenario, the BJD is not expected to wrest the seat from the saffron party.
7. The BJD, which was caught completely off guard and by surprise following the BJP’s win from Bargarh in 2019 has now chosen to go on the offensive itself and employed a surprise strategy as far as the selection of candidate from the constituency goes. The Biju Janata Dal has fielded a political novice, Parineeta Mishra from the constituency. Parineeta was announced as the BJD candidate hours after she joined the ruling party along with her husband Susanta Mishra. In fact, the BJD has pinned its hopes on winning Bargarh on Susanta Mishra and Naveen Patnaik.
8. Susanta Mishra was the BJP’s district unit vice-president in Bargarh before he quit the party and joined the BJD along with his wife. Susanta Mishra was vying for a ticket from the Batli seat for himself. However, the BJP’s decision to field its state secretary Irasis Acharya as the candidate for the assembly seat angered Mishra, following which he resigned. The BJD was quick to approach him with an offer for his wife to contest the election as its Bargarh Lok Sabha candidate.
9. While Parineeta Mishra is the BJD’s candidate, she is banking entirely on her husband Susanta Mishra and chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s image and influence in Bargarh to defeat the BJP. The BJD roped in the Mishra couple as it sensed an opportunity to cut into the saffron party’s votes by having a hefty leader like Susanta Mishra on its side.
10. While Susanta Mishra is a good addition for the BJD in purely electoral terms, he is not nearly capable of withstanding the massive Modi wave being witnessed in Bargarh. Susanta Mishra and Naveen Patnaik’s political capital combined will also not be able to counter the BJP here, since voters have largely made up their minds already. Parties’ campaigns are of not much concern to them since these are voters who decided who they will vote for even before dates for the election were announced.

Key issues

Farmers’ issues: Farmers face a number of challenges in Bargarh. There are no cold storage units or food processing plants in the region, which has been a major demand. Another demand has been to lower the export duty. Due to the absence of cold storage plants and irregular prices of paddy in the local market, farmers export their produce to neighbouring countries. However, the government has increased the export duty which has become a point of contention. Another major concern for the farmers is the increasing pest attacks on the crops. This leads to crop failure and increased debt pressure on the farmers. One more key issue is the demand to increase the MSP for their produce. Farmers in Bargarh have been demanding increased MSP rates for a long time and, according to ground reports, support the farmers’ protests in Haryana and Punjab. However, despite these issues, they will vote for the BJP at the Centre.

Railway connectivity: Railway connectivity has been a major challenge for the people here. There are no major railway junctions in the constituency, and no major railway line passes through the region. There are no major trains which pass through Bargarh. There is no connectivity to the capital or to agriculture markets for the Bargarh farmers to sell their produce. The central government is trying to address the issue by launching the Bargarh-Nuapada railway line. However, it is still under construction and its impact remains to be seen.

Unemployment: Unemployment remains a stinging issue in Bargarh. There is an absence of industries in the region, which forces the people to look outward for employment opportunities. 70% of the population in the region is engaged in agriculture. In search of better jobs, people, especially the youth, move towards urban centres and industrial corridors to work as daily wage labourers or to the bricklaying kilns in Maharashtra.

Civic amenities: Bargarh faces many concerns over civic amenities, from drinking water contamination to a lack of healthcare services and a scarcity of educational infrastructure. While the city to some degree has access to government-provided healthcare services, the same cannot be said for the hinterlands and the rural areas. This is also true for education. The people are miffed about the lack of educational infrastructure provided to the region, which they believe is one of the major reasons why development and growth have evaded the region.

Road connectivity: Intra-connectivity in the region has been dismal. Rural roads are in dilapidated condition with an absence of all-weather roads in 7-8 rural blocks in the constituency. While road construction has taken place, the quality of the work done by the contractor is subpar at best, which leads to quick deterioration of the road conditions. The absence of all-season tar roads is a bane. During the rains, these rural roads turn into mud pits, making it impossible to travel.

Ram Mandir: The Ayodhya Ram Mandir wave continues in Bargarh. The people are completely in awe of the central government to have made their dream of the grand temple come true. According to ground reports, the Ram Mandir wave has completely swept the people in the constituency and no matter what happens, they will be voting for the BJP and Modi at the Centre.

Infrastructure development

Bargarh-Nuapada railway line: It is a 142-km railway line that was approved by the central government last year as a special project in Orissa. It will connect the Bargarh Road-Nuapada Road railway line via Padampur.

High-level infrastructure projects: Union minister Nitin Gadkari had approved three projects that are currently under construction in Bargarh — a high-level bridge across the Hirakud dam reservoir, widening and strengthening of the Patnagarh-Padampur Road, and the Bargarh-Bhatli-Ambabhona Road.

Biju Expressway: It aims to connect many rural centres, fill the infrastructure gap, and stimulate industrial growth in previously underserved areas. It is currently under construction. Phase 1 was inaugurated in March 2023.

Water and irrigation projects: The Gangadhar Meher mega lift irrigation project, mega pipe water supply scheme at Sikridhi, and semi-permanent forest transit colony at Kumurkela village of Ambabhona block have been initiated and are at various levels of progress or have already been completed. The mega lift irrigation project will irrigate more than 30,000 hectares in 122 villages of Sohela, Bijepur, and Barpali blocks. Through the mega water supply scheme, piped water will be supplied to all houses in the Bargarh, Bijepur, Gaisilat and Barpali block areas.

Railway infrastructure: New lines were electrified and commissioned, connecting Bargarh to Jharsuguda and facilitating smoother travel. Several passenger amenities were added, including new platforms, waiting rooms, footbridges, and improved lighting and signage. The stations at Bargarh and Barpali were equipped with CCTV cameras for enhanced security. Other notable improvements included the installation of automatic ticket vending machines, point-of-sale machines, and water vending machines.

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