BHUBANESWAR: Apparently shocked over and shaken by the crushing defeat of party in the Bijepur assembly bypoll in western Odisha in the hands Biju Janata Dal (BJD), the BJP has decided to preempt any further such setbacks in the region.
The party state unit has invited national president Amit Shah to address two massive public rallies in Bhawanipatna and Bolangir on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively.
Western Odisha, considered the strong base of the BJP in Odisha, has slipped into the hands of the BJD since 2009. The party which used to win over 30 of the 64 Assembly seats in this region since 2000, has failed to win even double-digit number of seats in 2009 and 2014 seats polls. While it won 6 seats from the region in 2008, it currently has 8 of the total 10 legislators from the area.
