BJP heavyweights: Patra gains slender lead; Panda trails by 32,000 votes

Its advantage BJD which leads in 14 of 21 Lok Sabha constituencies

The BJP plays hard in every aspect of politics. It has the best ground game in terms of mobilisation, it has the best online strategy and it extends this to all aspects of the campaign

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BS Reporter Bhubaneswar

2 min read Last Updated : May 23 2019 | 4:57 PM IST

Unlike the cakewalks which the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) enjoyed in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, its arch rival BJP is offering a tough fight to the regional outfit to reclaim the constituencies.

Kendrapara, the nerve centre of the BJD-BJP conflict and touted as prestige war between chief minister Naveen Patnaik and the one-time BJD loyalist Baijayant Panda aka Jay Panda, now contesting on a BJP ticket, has kept both the sparring parties in tenterhooks. But till latest trends emerging, two-time MP Jay Panda is trailing by over 32,000 votes to BJD nominee and Odia cine heartthrob Anubhav Mohanty.