Bhubaneswar, (Reporterspen), May 2: Following Biju Janata Dal’s (BJD) announcement of its candidate for the Khandapada Assembly seat, senior leader and former MLA Anubhav Patnaik tendered his resignation from the party’s primary membership on Thursday.
Expressing his dismay in a letter addressed to BJD supremo and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Anubhav voiced his disappointment at being overlooked for the Khandapada ticket for the second consecutive time.
Anubhav Patnaik alleged that the party’s decision to disregard dedicated and long-serving party workers amounted to injustice. Despite securing victory in the 2014 Assembly elections on a BJD ticket for Khandapada, Anubhav was sidelined in 2019 when Soumya Ranjan Patnaik contested and won the seat, garnering 100,038 votes. Soumya Ranjan Patnaik was later expelled from the party in September 2023.
The BJD’s nomination of Bhapur block chairperson Sabitri Pradhan as the candidate for the upcoming elections in the constituency further fueled Anubhav’s discontent. He criticized the party for exploiting his loyalty, particularly citing his defense of the party against external criticism in the past.
Anubhav Patnaik hails from a political family, being the son of former legislators Arun Kumar Patnaik and Bijayalaxmi Patnaik. While Arun Patnaik secured victory from Khandapada in 1990 on a Janata Dal ticket, Bijayalaxmi won the seat twice in 2000 with a BJD ticket and in 2004 as an independent candidate.
