By Bizodisha Bureau, Bhubaneswar, October 6, 2022; The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) faces severe criticism from the opposition BJD and Congress for spending a whopping Rs 378 crore in advertisements in the last five years.

The ruling party has spent over Rs 378.629 crore on self-propagation. The advertisements include front pages of newspaper advertisements and roadside hoardings.

It has also been revealed that the lion’s share of the amount spent on advertisement was during 2018-19 alone, indicating the government opened its coffers during the election time.

During the months in the run-up to the 2019 general elections, the government gave out advertisements to different dailies to the tune of Rs 12,14,63,000 and spent state revenue over Rs10,03,81,000 for putting up photos on roadside billboards.

Similarly, the government had spent over Rs 61,94,00,000 on newspaper advertisements. The amounts in 2019-20 and 2020-21 were Rs 60 crore and over Rs 45 crore respectively.

With less than 20 months left for the 2024 general elections, the government has once again started spending money. The government is understood to have already spent Rs 76,27,39,000 on advertisements with no data on money spent on hoardings.

Human rights activist Biswapriya Kanungo said, “In the advertisements, the Chief Minister’s portrait took more space than contents. If the government is claiming that it has achieved popularity, it is because of these advertisements.”

Echoing the same, senior journalist Rabi Das said, “The government is spending much more in its own propagation. It can be seen that before the election year, newspapers would be booked for advertisements. This way, the government is earning popularity and, at the same time, having control over the media.”