Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik files nomination from Hinjili

Bhubaneswar, Mar 20: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Wednesday filed his nomination for Hinjili assembly constituency in Ganjam district.

This is the fifth consecutive time that the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) president is seeking election from Hinjili.

Patnaik, who would contest from two seats for the first time, has also been the party nominee for Bijepur. The chief minister said he will submit his nomination papers for Bijepur very shortly.

Patnaik is the first BJD candidate to file nomination for the assembly elections to be held along with the Lok Sabha polls in four phases next month.

Patnaik, announcing the Biju Janata Dal's first list of 54 legislature and nine parliament candidates on Monday, said he would be contesting from the usual Hinjili in Ganjam and Bijepur in western Odisha.

Western Odisha where the Bharatiya Janata Party gets it's best result from might see a tough contest this time. The scheduling of the simultaneous polls, over four phases instead of two, the BJD believes is unjustified and advantagous to the BJP which may have otherwise had its resources spread thin in in it's countrywide campaigning.