Bhubaneswar (Odisha): BJD president and former chief minister Naveen Patnaik is likely to become the Leader of Opposition in the Odisha Assembly as the regional outfit has scheduled its first legislature party meeting on Wednesday. This could be Patnaik's first time as Leader of Opposition (LoP) in his political career, which began in 1997.
Patnaik served as the CM of Odisha five consecutive times from 2000 until June 2024. If Patnaik takes on the role of LoP, the party may elect a deputy leader to handle day-to-day activities in the Assembly, party sources said. In the 147-member Assembly, the BJP has 78 members, followed by the BJD with 51, Congress (14), CPIM 3, and Independents 3. In the last Assembly, the BJD had 113 MLAs.
While Patnaik is expected to be unanimously elected as LoP, one of the senior leaders of the party is likely to be his deputy in the House. Given the saffron surge, many senior leaders lost their seats, but a few managed to retain it.
Senior BJD leaders who won include Prasanna Acharya from the Rairakhol seat, Ranendra Pratap Swain from Athagarh, Arun Sahu from Nayagarh, and Pratap Deb from Aul.
"Someone from among the four could be the BJD's deputy leader in the House," a senior leader said, adding that Acharya is considered the frontrunner for the deputy post due to his seniority.
