New Delhi:
The BJD on Friday scripted history with a landslide victory to form the government for a record fifth term in a row bagging 112 of the 146 assembly seats despite the Modi wave in the country. The BJD, which had grabbed the lion's share of 117 of the 147 assembly seats in the 2014 assembly polls, remained largely untouched by the Modi magic that swept across the country though its tally saw a marginal slide.
The BJP, however, has made substantial gains in Odisha this time with its nominees clinching 23 seats so far, while the Congress has bagged just nine. The CPI(M) and an Independent have bagged one seat each. The saffron party is now poised to emerge as the main opposition in the state. However, unlike in most other states where the BJP and its allies look like they are in firm command, the party will be a feeble opposition in Odisha.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, who steered his Biju Janata Dal (BJD) to another emphatic win in the assembly polls held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections, has pocketed his home turf Hinjili in Ganjam district as well as the Bijepur seat in Bargarh district of west Odisha.
