Sambit Patra was speaking on the sidelines of his roadshow in Puri on Tuesday evening.
Highlights
- Fighting with the name of our supreme leader Narendra Modi: Sambit Patra
- Sambit Patra is BJP's candidate for the Puri Lok Sabha constituency
- For months, there was buzz around PM choosing Puri as the second seat
All BJP candidates are like miniature Narendra Modis, fighting under his name rather than their own, says Sambit Patra, the BJP candidate in Odisha's Puri. This is his comeback for what his Biju Janata Dal (BJD) rival calls "one of the best" jokes on Twitter.
For months, there was buzz around Prime Minister Narendra Modi choosing Puri as the second constituency he would contest from in this election, along with Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh. The BJP ended all speculation about the PM when it announced Sambit Patra for Puri.
The BJD's three-time lawmaker Pinaki Mishra said: "That's so typical of BJP."
He explained: "I think one of the best Twitter jokes that has gone around is...BJP promised Narendra Modi, delivered Sambit Para, that it typical of BJP governance. He's an opponent, he will take his chances and I will take my chances. In all humility the people will decide."
When the conversation was relayed to Sambit Patra, he smiled: "No issues. Narendra Modi is the leader. Each candidate contesting across India represents a miniature version of Modi. We are fighting not with our names; we are fighting with the name of our supreme leader Narendra Modi."
His descriptor for PM Modi - "Supreme Leader" - provoked much Twitter talk.
Sambit Patra was speaking on the sidelines of his roadshow in Puri on Tuesday evening, headlined by party president Amit Shah.
The BJD has won five times in Puri. To wrest the seat in Odisha, a state where the BJP has attempted to make inroads over the past few years, the party has gone all out.