Bhubaneswar: With Dharmendra Pradhan’s exit from the Union cabinet, attention has turned to who from Odisha could be accommodated if Prime Minister Narendra Modi undertakes a reshuffle.State BJP president and Rajya Sabha MP Manmohan Samal, party vice-president Baijayant Panda and Rajya Sabha member Sujeet Kumar are among the names being discussed as potential contenders though PM Modi can always spring a surprise.BJP insiders said Samal had emerged as a strong claimant for a ministerial berth even before the developments that led to Pradhan’s resignation. As Odisha BJP president, he led the party to its first-ever independent victory in the state in the 2024 assembly polls, ending the BJD’s 24-year rule under Naveen Patnaik. Samal narrowly lost the Chandabali seat to BJD’s Byomakesh Ray by 1,916 votes — a result that denied him a stronger claim to the chief minister’s post.
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Since entering the Rajya Sabha earlier this year, speculation about his induction into the Union cabinet has only grown. “He remains a strong contender,” a BJP functionary said.During his previous tenure as state BJP president between 1999 and 2004, the party, in alliance with the BJD, became part of the govt in Odisha for the first time. Two decades later, BJP returned to power on its own under his leadership. Samal was elected MLA from Dhamnagar in 2004 and served as revenue and food supplies minister in the BJP-BJD coalition govt between 2004 and 2008.His political career began in student politics when he was elected president of the Bhadrak College Students’ Union in 1979. He later held several positions in the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).Sujeet Kumar, who quit the BJD and his Rajya Sabha seat before re-entering the Upper House as a BJP nominee in Dec 2024 and securing another term this year, is another name being discussed. Hailing from Kalahandi, he is a Supreme Court lawyer who has appeared before various high courts and tribunals. Sujeet holds an MBA from the Saïd Business School at Oxford University and a master’s degree in public administration from the Harvard Kennedy School. “He is regarded as a policy-oriented politician with legislative experience and could be an asset for any ministry,” another BJP office-bearer said.Pilot-turned-politician Baijayant Panda, the Kendrapada MP, has handled several key assignments for the BJP. A five-time MP, Panda quit the BJD in May 2018 and joined the BJP in 2019. He served as the party’s election in-charge for Assam, where the BJP retained power, and was also Delhi prabhari. He currently oversees the BJP Mahila Morcha as its national in-charge.A graduate of Michigan Technological University, Panda was part of the BJP’s national core group that articulated and communicated the rationale behind the abrogation of Article 370, which granted special status to Jammu & Kashmir. IAS officer-turned Bhuabaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi may also emerge a contender, a BJP source said.
