Bhubaneswar: In a significant political development in Odisha, former Bhadrak MP Manjulata Mandal and her husband, former Dhamnagar MLA Muktikanta Mandal, joined the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday along with a large number of their supporters.
The Mandal couple had resigned from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on April 26, months after being suspended by the regional party over alleged anti-party activities. Their exit was seen as a setback for the BJD in the Bhadrak region, where both leaders have maintained considerable political influence.
They formally joined the BJP in Bhubaneswar in the presence of Odisha BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP Manmohan Samal and other senior party leaders.
Manjulata Mandal was elected to the Lok Sabha from the Bhadrak constituency on a BJD ticket in 2019, while Muktikanta Mandal represented the Dhamnagar Assembly constituency after winning the 2014 Assembly elections as a BJD candidate.
Political observers view the induction of the Mandal couple as a strategic move by the BJP to strengthen its organizational base in Bhadrak and adjoining districts ahead of upcoming electoral contests in the state.
