"There is a Naveen Patnaik wave, BJD going to better than 2019," says BJD's VK Pandian

Odisha: 5T Chairman and Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader VK Pandian hailed his party and exuded confidence over the victory of the BJD.
"BJD is sweeping the elections, whether it is the first, second, third or fourth phase. To be precise, in the first phase, BJD is winning a minimum of 24 out of 28 seats. Last time, we had 20 seats. This time, there is Naveen Patnaik's wave, so we should be winning more than 24 seats out of 28 seats. In two seats, there is competition with the Congress and the BJP. In the Lok Sabha elections also, we are going to do much better than last time," he said.
Slamming the Bharatiya Janata Party, he said, "The people of Odisha were waiting to hear from the five leaders to see the Chief Minister's face for the BJP. There was news that it was going to be a woman's face but, unfortunately, all these five leaders fought before coming to a consensus. They didn't declare the name; in fact, BJD has been challenging them to come up with a CM face."
Likening the BJP to the previous Congress government in the centre, he said, "They proved yesterday that their remote control will be with Delhi, their high command. Their accountability and commitment will be for the Delhi high command and not for the people of Odisha. They will be controlled by Delhi, like the Congress government. If they are really serious about doing something for Odisha, they should get out of this Congress mentality of selecting CM candidates by the high command."
Earlier, Pandian launched a scathing attack against Union Minister of Education Minister of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship and BJP Lok Sabha candidate from Sambalpur, Dharmendra Pradhan, questioning what he has done for the development of this region.
While addressing a public meeting in the Kamakhyanagar Assembly Constituency under the Dhenkanal Lok Sabha Constituency, Pandian questioned the purported BJP wave in Odisha and expressed confidence in BJD's electoral prospects.
"There has been a central minister from this place. Has he given you any updates on what he has done for you? On the other hand, our Chief Minister has been working to make Odisha the number one state in the country. This central government has not been able to complete the work on the Sambalpur-Cuttack National Highway for ten years now. Many have lost lives on that stretch of road in these years, " he said.
"Has the central government opened any Kendriya Vidyalaya or Jawahar Navoday Vidyalaya, skill development centres, in your locality? Have they done anything to provide you with employment and your children with scholarships? He is the Union education minister. Had he wished, he could have set up new colleges or schools. Even the school in his native village has been transformed by the Odisha government," he added.
On Sunday, Pandian shared a comparative analysis of Gujarat and Odisha on various indicators, claiming that Odisha is performing well ahead of Gujarat on various parameters. BJD said in a release that it is ironic that even after two and a half decades of the Bharatiya Janata Party being in power in Gujarat, its situation is quite dismal as compared to Odisha.
Notably, Lok Sabha and assembly polls are being held simultaneously in Odisha. The four-phased Lok Sabha and assembly elections started on May 13 and will also be held on May 20, May 25 and June 1.