In 2000, Congress lost Odisha to the Biju Janata Dal (BJD)- the regional political party founded and led by Naveen Patnaik, the current Chief Minister of the State and the son of former Odisha CM Biju Patnaik, after whom the party is named.
The Congress has weakened over the decades while the BJD has seen a steady rise. From internal feuds to party's inconsistent leadership, the oldest political party has been affected by a slew of issues.
Still, the Congress had managed to hold power in South Odisha. However, the alleged neglect by the party high command seems to be taking a toll on the party as more and more Congress leaders are joining the BJD or the BJP.
Also Read
A couple of days after the party's former Laxmipur MLA Kailash Kulesika joined the ruling BJD, working president of Odisha PCC and former Nabarangpur MP Pradeep Majhi resigned from the primary membership of Congress on Friday.
Majhi's resignation came after several days of speculations that he would quit Congress and join the BJD 'so that he can serve people well'.
Majhi had represented the Nabarangpur Lok Sabha in 2009 but he lost the seat to the BJD in 2014 and 2019 general elections.
Besides, Chandrasekhar Majhi senior Congress leader and former MLA of Kotpad Constituency in Koraput district of Odisha quit the party and joined BJD in September.
Greater harm is being done to the Congress by its own leaders. Lack of coordination and discipline is affecting the party. Had it not been the case, the party would not have slipped to third position in Odisha in 2019 general polls, believe political experts.