The Bharatiya Janata Party on March 24 announced candidates for 18 out of 21 Lok Sabha seats in Odisha. The one nomination that sparked instant attention is that of that Pradeep Panigrahy, the sitting MLA from Gopalpur.
Despite his past controversies, including a stint of seven months in jail for allegedly deceiving youths with false job promises, the nomination for Berhampur Lok Sabha seat has placed Mr. Panigrahy directly in the political heartland of Ganjam— Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s home district.
The controversial politician has travelled the entire political spectrum with BJP fielding him as a Lok Sabha candidate in the 2024 General Election. Once a blue-eyed boy of Odisha CM, Mr. Panigrahy was instrumental in managing political affairs on behalf of Mr. Patnaik in latter’s Hinjili Assembly seat.
