TNI Bureau: All eyes are on 5 Women MLAs of BJP who made the cut this time. 5 out of 78, may look very small, but the team is comprised of seniors like Pravati Parida and Surama Padhy and young and agile Upasna Mohapatra.
BJP put all its efforts to break the women vote bank of BJD that always played a key role in party’s growth. Subhadra like schemes, changed the game completely. However, to make a clear dent in BJD’s women vote bank, BJP needs to induct at least 2-3 women into the Cabinet to give a clear message to them.
Out of these 5 women candidates, Simarani Nayak and Sanjali Murmu don’t look very promising. However, Pravati, Surama and Upasna look rock solid to take up any responsibilities that come their way.
One of the senior women leaders, either Pravati and Surama should be made the Speaker of Odisha Assembly. The other two women, including Upasna could be the part of the cabinet and lead the onslaught.
At the age 26, Upasna has the fire and determination to deliver, which was proven during her fight against two BJD stalwarts Sanjay Dasburma and Uma Samantaray in the fierce battle of Brahmagiri. She carries the Lulu Legacy that exists across the state. Upasna could be instrumental in bringing the old Congress leaders into BJP.
A woman speaker and two women ministers in the Cabinet, should be more than enough to send a clear message that BJP respects women power and accommodate them in the system with due respect.