Campus Polls: Naveen Claims BCJD Won 60% College Seats, 50% University Posts Despite BJP Challenge
Bhubaneswar: Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president Naveen Patnaik has claimed that the party’s student wing, Biju Chhatra Janata Dal (BCJD), secured a dominant performance in Odisha’s recent campus elections by winning over 60 per cent of college seats and around 50 per cent of university positions.
Reacting to the results, Naveen Patnaik alleged that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attempted to influence the elections through money power and misuse of administrative machinery.
Despite these challenges, he asserted that BCJD candidates emerged victorious across a majority of educational institutions.
The campus election results have triggered competing political narratives in the state.
While the BJD hailed the outcome as a reflection of continued support among students and first-time voters, the BJP celebrated the performance of its student wing, Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP).
According to reported results, ABVP secured victories in eight of Odisha’s 13 state universities, while BCJD won five university posts.
The Congress-backed National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) failed to secure any university president’s position.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah congratulated ABVP for its performance, describing the results as an endorsement of a nationalistic vision among the state’s youth.
Meanwhile, BCJD president Ipsita Sahoo accused the BJP government of using official machinery to influence the elections but said students rejected such attempts.
She highlighted BCJD victories in Bolangir and Puri, districts represented by Odisha’s deputy chief ministers, as evidence of the student community’s support for the regional party.
The campus poll outcome is being viewed as an important indicator of youth sentiment in Odisha and is likely to influence the political discourse ahead of future electoral battles in the state.
