The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has not yet made a decision regarding its position on the proposal for simultaneous elections, according to party leader Sasmit Patra. Speaking on Tuesday, Patra stated that the party would assess the details of two bills currently before the Lok Sabha — the “One Nation, One Election” Bill and the Union Territories Laws Bill — before determining its stance.
The “One Nation, One Election” Bill aims to synchronize elections at the national and state levels, while the Union Territories Laws Bill seeks to align elections in the union territories of Jammu and Kashmir, Puducherry, and Delhi. Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal introduced both bills on Tuesday.
Patra assured that BJD President Naveen Patnaik is closely monitoring the issue. The party, which currently lacks representation in the Lok Sabha, will make a decision once the bills are presented in the Rajya Sabha. “Once we receive the bill, we will thoroughly examine it and decide the course of action,” he said.
Additionally, Patra addressed rumors of defections within the party, which did not secure any Lok Sabha seats in the recent elections. He emphasized that all seven BJD MPs in the Rajya Sabha are unified in their support for Naveen Patnaik and dismissed the defection reports as “completely false, fabricated, and concocted.”
While BJD has supported the ruling BJP on several occasions in Parliament, the party remains independent after its exit from the National Democratic Alliance in 2009. Following its defeat in the state assembly elections and absence in the Lok Sabha, BJD has positioned itself as a strong opposition in the Rajya Sabha but is not part of the opposition INDIA bloc.
 has not yet made a decision regarding its position on the proposal for simultaneous elections, according to party leader Sasmit Patra. Speaking on Tuesday, Patra stated that the party would assess the details of two bills currently before the Lok Sabha — the "One Nation, One Election" Bill and the Union Territories Laws Bill — before determining its stance.){kind=link}