BJD president Naveen Patnaik leaves for Delhi to return after vice president polls

Bhubaneswar, Sep 7 (PTI) A day after hearing the views of senior party leaders about BJD's possible stand in the vice-presidential elections on September 9, party president and Leader of Opposition in Odisha Assembly Naveen Patnaik on Sunday embarked on a four-day tour of New Delhi.

Patnaik may undergo health check-up in the national capital, party sources said, adding that the BJD supremo may meet party MPs before the vice-president election.

Patnaik met senior BJD leaders and members of the political affairs committee (PAC) on Saturday evening.

In a post on X, Patnaik on Sunday stated, "The Biju Janata Dal has always been at the forefront in protecting the interests of the people of Odisha." He also said that the PAC meeting focused on intensifying outreach to every household to highlight the state government's "incompetence".

In the PAC meeting, the BJD president also heard the views of senior leaders on what stand the BJD should take in the vice-president election under the changed circumstances when the party is in opposition in Odisha.

The BJD has seven Rajya Sabha MPs.

In the vice president election, the BJD has three options - abstain from polls, support NDA candidate CP Radhakrishnan, or support INDIA bloc's B Sudershan Reddy.

A senior party leader said, "Though the BJD is maintaining equal distance from both NDA and INDIA bloc, party president Naveen Patnaik may make a surprise announcement of the party's stand in the vice president elections during his Delhi visit." Patnaik's visit to the national capital also follows a recent phone call from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who had inquired about his health and invited him to Delhi.

While wishing him a speedy recovery, Modi had suggested that Patnaik visit Delhi after being discharged from hospital.

The BJD abstained from the 2012 vice presidential polls, in which Hamid Ansari won. It backed non-NDA candidate Gopalkrishna Gandhi in the 2017 polls, in which Venkaiah Naidu was elected. In 2022, it supported NDA candidate Jagdeep Dhankar. PTI AAM AAM RG