Bhubaneshwar: Orissa's ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) may allot its ally Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) fewer seats in the coming assembly and general elections, BJD leader Surya Narayan Patro said Wednesday.
"The BJP has lost its grip in many seats and the BJD is considering doing away with the old seat-sharing equations," Patro, who is also a cabinet minister, told IANS.
Orissa has 21 Lok Sabha and 147 assembly constituencies. The BJD and BJP jointly fought the Lok Sabha polls in 1998, 1999 and 2004 and the assembly elections of 2000 and 2004.
In both assembly polls, the BJP contested 63 seats and BJD 84. In the general elections, the BJP contested nine seats and BJD 12.
"There are many constituencies where the BJP had won but now the BJD has a strong presence and would like to field its candidates," Patro said.
He refused to disclose the number of seats the BJD wants to contest.
Patro's statement comes in the wake of the BJP's debacle in elections to corporations in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. The elections were fought by the BJD and BJP separately.
"Cuttack and Bhubaneswar can be held as examples of the BJD's popularity because both the cities have people who have hail from places across the state," Patro said.
“The BJD would be interested in fielding its candidates in these constituencies for the assembly elections,” he said.
Patro added that the BJD will also seek to field more candidates in the Lok Sabha polls this year as compared to the last election.
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