Several popular Odia Jatra (opera) artists, including Daitari Panda, Bapi Panda, Subhas Behera and Hrusikesh Mishra, on Monday joined the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) ahead of the general elections.
At least 350 Jatra artists from across the State joined the BJD in the presence of party vice-president and MLA Debi Prasad Mishra and MPs Amar Patnaik and Manas Mangaraj at the party office Sankha Bhawan here.
The good work of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik prompted the Jatra artists to join BJD, said the party.
In a related development, senior neurosurgeon Pratap Kumar Pani also joined the BJD. Pani is a former president of SCB Medical College Students’ Union and also a founding member of the Odia Samaj in Bangalore.
