Naveen Patnaik To Be Leader Of Opposition In Odisha Assembly

Bhubaneswar: In a widely anticipated move, former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik was unanimously elected leader of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) legislature party on Wednesday. The election took place at a meeting chaired by Patnaik himself at Sankha Bhawan in Bhubaneswar.

With this election, Patnaik is set to take on the role of Leader of the Opposition (LoP) in the Odisha Assembly for the first time in his political career, which began in 1997 after he won a by-election for the Aska Lok Sabha seat following the death of his father, Biju Patnaik.

During the BJD legislature party meeting, Rairakhol MLA and former Minister Prasanna Acharya was selected as the deputy leader of the BJD legislature party. Additionally, Pramila Mallik was appointed Chief Whip, and Pratap Keshari Deb was named Deputy Chief Whip.

After his election, Patnaik expressed his gratitude to the BJD MLAs for their support. “I congratulated and thanked them. They have elected me as the Leader of the Opposition and leader of the BJD legislature party,” he stated.

This shift comes as the BJD transitions to the role of the opposition in the Odisha Assembly for the first time, following the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s victory in the recent elections. The BJP secured 78 out of the 147 Assembly seats, forming the government, while the BJD won 51 seats and the Congress obtained 14 seats.