BJD deal imminent? No Odisha name in BJP list fuels buzz

Speculation about a possible BJP-BJD coalition intensified further as no one from Odisha appeared in first BJP list of 195 Lok Sabha candidates released on Saturday. It was anticipated that the BJP list will have four names from Odisha - Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan (Sambalpur), national spokesperson Sasmit Patra (Puri), ex-Union minister Jual Oram (Sundargarh) and Aparajita Sarangi (Bhubaneswar).