Odisha’s BJD to abstain from voting in Vice President polls

The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) remains equidistant from both the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) alliances

The Biju Janata Dal in Odisha declared on Monday that the party will stay away from casting votes in the Vice President election scheduled for Tuesday.

“Biju Janata Dal has decided to abstain from the vice presidential elections tomorrow. The Biju Janata Dal remains equidistant from both the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) alliances. We are focused on the development and welfare of Odisha and 4.5 crore people of Odisha,” stated Sasmit Patra, the BJD’s Rajya Sabha leader, while addressing the media on Monday.

Insiders revealed that the political affairs committee of the party convened last week and advised president Naveen Patnaik to refrain from backing the Bharatiya Janata Party. Members believed supporting BJP would harm BJD’s struggle against the ruling party, which continues to hold significant power within Odisha. The final authority on the matter was left with Patnaik, who travelled to Delhi on Sunday before confirming the stand.

The BJD has followed different strategies in earlier vice-presidential elections. In 2012, it abstained when Hamid Ansari secured victory. The party extended support to non-NDA nominee Gopalkrishna Gandhi in 2017, though Venkaiah Naidu eventually triumphed. Later in 2022, the party backed NDA candidate Jagdeep Dhankhar, who went on to become the Vice President.

“This time, the situation turned more complex since the BJD government lost its grip on power to the BJP in the 2024 state elections,” mentioned a senior leader within the party. Another functionary explained that, owing to its long history of standing against Congress, the BJD could not align with Opposition candidate B Sudershan Reddy either.

Meanwhile, a senior opposition leader outside Congress shared with Hindustan Times that no effort was made to contact the BJD for support in this election.