Bhubaneswar, April 4 -- There is an old adage; everything is fair in love and war. Arguably, it is ever so relevant in today's politics.

The case in point is the Chikiti Assembly constituency in Ganjam district. Earlier, Chikiti would see the political battle between the royal family and Chintamani Dyan Samantaray. While the royal family has been representing the Janata Dal and the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Chintamani was elected to the Odisha Legislative Assembly thrice- as an independent candidate in 1980, on a Congress ticket in 1985 and again as an independent candidate in 1995. He also served as the Speaker of the Odisha Legislative Assembly.

Cut to the present, the political fight is not only between Chintamani's family and the royal...