Gujarat chief minister and BJP national campaign committee chairperson Narendra Modi has a task in hand in Orissa now. He has to accomplish a mission which he and top leaders of his party failed to do in 2009; the mission to defeat to the friend-turned foe Biju Janata Dal (BJD).
In 2009, just a few days before the polls, BJD president and chief minister Naveen Patnaik snapped 12-year-old ties with the BJP dubbing the party as “communal”.
Seething in anger, the BJP landed several star campaigners in Orissa, including Sushma Swaraj, Narendra Modi and Rajnath Singh, to unseat the Naveen Patnaik government and avenge the humiliation. Mr Modi dubbed Mr Patnaik as “betrayer” and predicted a total rout of the BJD in the Assembly polls.
However, nothing happened to the BJD and the party increased its tally from 61 to 101.
On the other hand, the BJP saw its fortune plummeting from 32 in 2009 to 7 that included a BJP supported independent legislator. It could not even open its account in Lok Sabha polls. In the previous 2004 LS polls, the party had won seven seats.
The BJP state leaders then clarified that they could not undertake a focused poll campaign because of lack of adequate time and now, as they claim, the party is well-geared up for an impressive show in the 2014 polls.
“Modiji’s speech in Puri on Tuesday has greatly inspired our party leaders and workers as well. He will revisit the state on October 20 to formally launch the party’s poll campaign. We are quite hopeful of a complete turnaround in the party’s future,” BJP general secretary and Rajya Sabha member Dharmendra Pradhan said.
In his address to party workers, Mr Modi exhorted them to shun “comfort” and “complacency” and work hard to bring the party in power.
“Don’t worry for the fact that you have only seven legislators in the state Assembly. Work hard and try to instill faith and confidence in party workers who play pivotal role in bringing the party into power,” Mr Modi said in his address.
Stating that people of Odisha were opposed to the Congress, the Gujarat chief minister said “the BJP can do well if it can successfully exposed the piles of corruption cases” that took place under the Naveen Patnaik government.