3 min readBhubaneswarUpdated: Jun 25, 2026 01:04 PM IST
In a significant move in Odisha politics, former IAS officer Sujata Rout Karthikeyan, wife of bureaucrat-turned-politician VK Pandian, is likely to join the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on Thursday.
Though the BJD is yet to officially confirm her induction, party insiders said BJD supremo Naveen Patnaik would induct Karthikeyan, a former IAS officer, into the party. A group of senior BJD leaders visited Naveen Niwas, the residence of the BJD president, on Wednesday, where he is believed to have informed them about Sujata’s entry into the party.
“We will support whatever decision is taken by the party president. When I was Minister for Women and Child Development, she had worked as secretary and was an able administrator. Her joining will be beneficial for the party,” said former minister Tukuni Sahu.
There has been speculation about her entry into the BJD for the past few months. The 2000-batch IAS officer from Kendrapara in coastal Odisha opted for voluntary retirement in March last year.
Although Sujata is unlikely to take up any position in the party and may work in Patnaik’s office, a senior BJD leader said her induction is part of the party’s larger succession plan.
“In view of Naveen Babu’s advancing age and ailing health, he seriously needs someone to assist in running the party, which still has a massive support base across Odisha. Sujata is likely to play that role,” said a BJD leader, requesting anonymity.
Sujata’s husband, VK Pandian, also a 2000-batch IAS officer and Patnaik’s trusted bureaucrat, took VRS and joined the BJD in November 2023, months before the general and Assembly elections. He spearheaded the party’s campaign and candidate selection for the 2024 polls, in which the BJD suffered a major setback, losing power after ruling the state for 24 years.
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During the elections, the BJP’s top leadership, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, ran an aggressive campaign targeting Pandian’s Tamil identity, which is believed to have contributed to the BJD’s electoral setback. Pandian announced his exit from active politics after the party’s defeat.
Sujata’s possible entry into the BJD has also not gone down well with a section of senior party leaders, many of whom still hold Pandian responsible for the party’s 2024 defeat.
While switching to the BJP in May, senior leader and former Naveen aide Debashish Samantaray said: “V K Pandian is solely responsible for the BJD’s defeat in the 2024 polls and he single-handedly managed to stop the BJD’s winning spree. Naveen babu, during the 2024 election campaign, clarified that Pandian is not his successor. But he (Patnaik) handed over his Delhi residence at Dr A P J Abdul Kalam Road to the foundation trust headed by Pandian. The house belongs to Biju Patnaik, the most revered leader in the state and the move is an insult to Odia self-esteem”.
