Jyoti Prakash appointed BJD Balasore dist chief

Bhubaneswar: The ruling BJD on Thursday appointed former minister and Simulia MLA Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi as its Balasore district unit president.

Panigrahi’s appointment comes after the BJD did not accept his resignation from the primary membership of the party. He was upset after the BJD denied him a party ticket this time to contest from Simulia Assembly segment. The party nominated Subhasini Sahoo from Simulia.

In an official order signed by BJD president Naveen Patnaik, the party said, “Jyoti Prakash Panigrahi is hereby appointed as the president of Balasore district unit and Aswini Kumar Patra is hereby appointed as the State general secretary, Biju Janata Dal, with immediate effect.”

In a video message, Panigrahi had said his late father Parshuram Panigrahi was associated with former chief minister Biju Patnaik for over 40 years and he also served the party for 10 years. “My family will continue to serve the people of Khaira and Simulia. I also hope for your cooperation,” he said.

In 2019, Panigrahi retained the Simulia Assembly seat by defeating Padmalochan Panda of the BJP.

Subhasini Sahoo, the BJD nominee from Simulia, is the wife of Shashi Kumar Sahoo, who unsuccessfully contested from the Assembly segment on a BJP ticket in 2014.