New Delhi: Kendrapara MP Baijayant Panda, popularly known as Jay Panda, has finally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. Ever since he was suspended from the ruling Biju Janata Dal – of which he was a member for almost two decades – in January 2018 for “anti-party activities”, speculation had been rife that given his close proximity to the saffron party, he would join the BJP at some point or the other. It finally took Panda, the biggest industrialist of the eastern state, over a year to take the plunge. Political observers in the state say that the delay was likely caused by two reasons. First, soon after Panda was suspended from BJD, it was said that he had eyed the chief ministerial position and lobbied with the BJP leadership to project him as the party’s face in the 2019 assembly polls – which are to be held together with the parliamentary polls. However, by this time, party president Amit Shah had already appointed Dharmendra Pradhan, the Union minister for petroleum and natural gas, to lead the BJP in Odisha. Pradhan, who himself does not have much mass support and is currently a Rajya Sabha MP from Madhya Pradesh, is said to be among Shah’s favourites.Also read: Odisha: BJP Picks Up Former BJD Lawmaker Jay Panda Ahead of PollsThe second reason is more conspiratorial, and has been advanced by critics of the BJD, who, like the Congress, believe that the Naveen Patnaik-led government is actually “remote-controlled” by the Union government. They believe that the chief minister was so miffed with Panda that he allegedly bargained with the BJP’s leadership to stop the former BJD leader’s induction in the saffron party. “And now that the elections are only a month away, Panda joining the BJP will hardly affect the BJD’s prospects in the state,” says a political observer who did not want to be named. Whatever the case, Panda’s induction at this moment reflects poorly for BJP’s prospects in the state. Panda does not have a mass base which he can call as his own support group. A senior journalist in Odisha, Rabi Das, tells The Wire, “It is quite clear now that the BJP, with its poor organisational strength and a lacklustre campaign, stands no chance to form the government in the state. The BJP understands that clearly. At best, it can improve its performance. Panda’s wife owns the state’s biggest media company, OTV. By inducting Panda, it is possible that the BJP wants to cash into the TV channel’s popularity.”He adds that the the realisation that the saffron party does not have a real chance at forming the state government also appears to have neutralised the rivalry between Panda and Pradhan.Former Biju Janata Dal MP Baijayant Jay Panda greets BJP national president Amit Shah after joining Bharatiya Janata Party, in New Delhi, Monday. Credit: PTIPanda’s curious decisionWhen it comes to Panda’s own shot at the Kendrapara parliamentary constituency from where he had been elected twice on a BJD ticket, his chances look bleak as far as the seat’s electoral equations are concerned. The coastal Odisha constituency has an estimated 60,000 Muslim – and most likely anti-BJP – voters. Although BJD has the strongest footing in the seat, Congress too has finished a close second over the last few elections. With BJP’s poor presence in the constituency, questions are bound to be asked about picking Panda at this juncture. “The state-level dynamics are unlikely to change by Panda’s move,” the former editor-at-large of Hindustan Times, Rajesh Mahapatra, tells The Wire. Mahapatra is currently based in Bhubaneswar. “Panda moving to the BJP may hand the BJD a distinct advantage. Had he joined the Congress, BJD would have had a really tough fight on its hands. It is traditionally a non-Congress seat, but the party has retained a substantial number of votes there,” he adds. In that case, Panda joining the BJP should worry the Congress, and not so much the BJD, the senior journalist says, as the division of opposition votes in Kendrapara could aid the BJD. Precisely for this reason, rumours are afloat that Panda may choose to contest from Cuttack instead of Kendrapara.Also read: In Odisha, BJP Seems to Have Little Clue on How to Take on the Ruling BJDAccording to one political observer, who did not want to be named, Panda’s move could be more of a “business decision” than a political one. “Panda is the biggest industrialist in the state. The BJD stands the best chance to form the state government at the moment. Panda’s relationship with Naveen Patnaik has gone completely sour. At this time, it is crucial for Panda to safeguard his business interests. Allying with a central party was important for him,” says the analyst. He said that the state government’s vindictiveness against Panda reflected in the way the Odisha assembly summoned Jagi Panda, Jay Panda’s wife and owner of OTV, for broadcasting a story. Even last year, he said, OTV was allegedly harassed by the state police for running an investigative story against action taken against OTV. In fact, Jagi Panda was summoned recently by the Odisha assembly. “Such harassment of journalists and journalistic organisations has never happened in the state,” he says. If Panda has apparently bought some immunity by joining the saffron party, the gain will be singularly his – even in the case he loses the election. For the BJP, it may not be anything more than good optics.
