Congress will win Odisha just like Telangana: Senior MLA Routray

Routray, a six-time MLA, said the Congress would organise a massive public meeting in Bhubaneswar at the end of this month and party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra would attend.

Bhubaneswar: Senior Congress MLA Suresh Routray on Sunday claimed that his party will win the assembly elections in Odisha next year just like it did in Telangana.

Routray, a six-time MLA, said the Congress would organise a massive public meeting in Bhubaneswar at the end of this month and party leaders such as Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra would attend it.

'The infighting between two senior leaders sent a negative message at the grassroots level leading to the party's debacle in Rajasthan. In Madhya Pradesh, the BJP won the elections using money power,' he claimed.

'But, the party registered a decisive victory in Telangana, and it will be repeated in Odisha in 2024,' he said, asserting that the assembly elections here will be a contest between Congress and the ruling BJD.

Routray said the mega meeting, to be held in December-end, will see a congregation of over 2 lakh people, including farmers, women and tribals.

Meanwhile, the BJP celebrated its performances in the assembly elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh at the party's state headquarters here.

The BJP was racing towards power in the Hindi heartland states of Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan and had a distinct edge in Chhattisgarh, while the Congress was poised to oust the BRS in Telangana in a crucial electoral exercise ahead of the Lok Sabha polls, just months away.

The assembly elections in Odisha are usually held along with the Lok Sabha polls.