Battle lines drawn for Orissa polls

With three days to go for the polls, an uncertain five -party alliance led by Cong is preparing to face the might of the BJD-BJP coalition.

With three days to go for the first phase of Lok Sabha and assembly elections in Orissa, an uncertain five-party alliance led by the Congress is preparing to face the might of the ruling BJD-BJP coalition.

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The first phase polls are being held on April 20 in the hilly terrains of the South and West comprising 11 Lok Sabha and 77 assembly constituencies.

Elections to the rest 10 parliamentary and 70 assembly constituencies are scheduled for April 26. This is the first time since 1971 that simultaneous elections are being held in the state.

A total number of over 1.29 crore voters would cast their ballots in the first phase polls. There are 54 candidates in fray in the 11 Lok Sabha seats and 417 aspirants in the 77 assembly constituencies.

First off the blocks in the race to retain power in the state and Centre, the BJD-BJP combine were ahead in the campaign stakes as the Congress spent a lot of time to "gather its friends" before going to the battle.

While the BJD-BJP leaders had fanned out into the districts seeking the support of the electorate, the Congress kickstart their campaign from Puri---where Deputy Prime minister L.K.Advani ended his Rath Yatra on Wednesday---as late as on April 10.

Advani's three-day roller coaster ride through Orissa's eight parliamentary and 29 assembly constituencies over three days appears to have invigorated the BJD-BJP electioneering.

Besides, Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee also campaigned in the state for a day addressing two meetings at Keonjhar and Bhubaneswar.

Several film stars including Vinod Khanna, Hema Malini, Dara Singh and Vijayshanti also addressed meetings in the state providing colour to the listless electioneering.

But except PCC president J.B.Patnaik and AICC leader Digvijay Singh, who are leading the party's campaign along with alliance partners CPI, CPI(M), JMM and Orissa Gana Parishad (OGP), none of the senior leaders of the Congress have come to the state till now.

Rajya Sabha member Dilip Ray, who had recently sided with Congress, is also campaigning for alliance candidates.

AICC chief Sonia Gandhi, who had held a "roadshow" in coastal Orissa over a month ago, is scheduled to address three election meetings at Jeypore, Nuapada and Jharsuguda tomorrow, the day electioneering comes to an end for the first phase.

Campaigners point out that the low-key campaign so far was because of the intense heat prevailing in many parts of the state.

The day temperature in the Western belt has already reached 44 to 45 degrees celcius.

Reports say that the campaign was picking up only in the evening but comes to an abrupt end at 10 PM due to the Election Commission's instructions.

One of the key battles being fought on the parliamentary turf was at Sundargarh, a tribal seat, where Union Minister for Tribal Affairs and BJP leader Jual Oram is facing veteran Congress leader and former MP Frida Topno.

Oram is seeking to register a hattrick of victories from the seat having won the 1998 and 1999 polls.

At Koraput (ST) parliamentary constituency, former Chief Minister Giridhar Gamang is locked in a fierce battle with Mutika Papanna (BJD), a former judge of the Orissa High Court.

Three other members of the dissolved Lok Sabha, Bikram Keshari Deo (Kalahandi), Sangeeta Singh Deo (Balangir)---both of BJP--and BJD's Prasanna Acharya (Sambalpur) are also bidding to enter Parliament for the third consecutive time.

While Sangeeta Singh Deo faced his old rival and former PCC chief Sarat Patnaik, Bikram Keshori Deo was battling Congress leader and former minister of state for Railway Bhakta Charan Das.

Acharya was facing a Congress greenhorn Sanjay Bhoi, the son for former MP from the seat, Late Krupasindhu Bhoi.

Ten ministers in the Naveen Patnaik-led government also are in the fray for the first phase assembly polls.

They included Ananga Uday Singh Deo (Balangir), Mangala Kishan (Rajgangpur-st), Ananda Acharya (Bargarh), Suryanarayan Patra (Mohana), Balabhadra Majhi (Narla-st) and Rabinarayan Nanda (Jeypore) all of whom belonged to the BJD.

The four BJP ministers whose fate would be determined in the first phase elections are Kanak Vardhan Singh Deo (Patnagarh), Arabinda Dhali (Malkangiri-SC), Bimbadhar Kuanr (Bhatli-SC) and Himanshu Sekhar Meher (Junagarh).

A large number of rebels, who have entered the scene in over 100 assembly constituencies after being denied tickets either by the BJD, BJP or Congress, have threatened to queer the pitch for several party candidates.

Prominent among the rebels are former Union Minister Bhajaman Behera, who is seeking election from the Dhenkanal Lok Sabha and Hindol(SC) assembly constituencies. Behera, who was a BJD member and a member of the state Planning Board, is contesting as a Samajwadi Party candidate.

Former BJD leader Sachidananda Dalal, who was for sometime the leader of Opposition in the state assembly, is another prominent rebel seeking election from the Boudh assembly seat.

Many of the rebels have been either suspended or expelled by their respective parties.

Meanwhile, security had been tightened in the naxalite infested Southern region with 25 companies of security forces deployed in the districts of Rayagada, Koraput, Malkangiri and Gajapati.

Official sources said three helicopters were being pressed into service on the polling day to maintain surveillance over the region.