Odisha: BJP, Congress declare candidates for Padmapur bypoll

He won the seat in 2014 but lost it in the 2019 election to BJDs Bijay Ranjan Singh Bariha whose death on October 3 necessitated the bypoll.Purohit, a firebrand farmer leader, will file his nomination on November 14, leader of opposition Jaynarayan Mishra said.Confident of getting the partys nomination, Purohit has already started his campaign.

The opposition BJP fielded Pradip Purohit and the Congress named ex-MLA Satya Bhusan Sahu as their candidates for the December 5 bypoll to the Padmapur assembly seat in Odisha's Bargarh district.

Purohit is the state president of Krushak Morcha. He won the seat in 2014 but lost it in the 2019 election to BJD's Bijay Ranjan Singh Bariha whose death on October 3 necessitated the bypoll.

Purohit, a firebrand farmer leader, will file his nomination on November 14, leader of opposition Jaynarayan Mishra said.

Confident of getting the party's nomination, Purohit has already started his campaign. In a statement, Congress announced that Sahu, who won the Padmapur seat in 1980, 1985 and 2004, will be its candidate. He was also the Congress candidate from the seat in 2019, but he secured the third spot after BJP's Purohit by getting 32,787 votes.

Purohit got 77,565 votes, while Bariha won the elections by getting 83,299 votes.

Sahu said the problems being faced by farmers would be his main election issue.

''Though there are certain resource constraints, I have been assured by the party of full support. I will contest the bypoll to win,'' he said.

State Congress president Sarat Pattanayak said his party will focus on Padmapur as it was once the party's ''fort''.

''The people's anger against the BJD and BJP will ensure the Congress's victory,'' he claimes.

The ruling BJD, which tasted its first bypoll defeat since 2009 in Dhamnagar earlier this month, is yet to declare its candidate for Padmapur. However, party sources said that Bariha's wife Tilottama is among the frontrunners for the nomination.

''The BJD leadership is very serious about the selection of the candidate for Padmapur as it does not want to repeat the mistake it committed in Dhamnagar. The party feels that a weak candidate, and a rebel within it led to the defeat in Dhamnagar,'' a senior party leader said.

BJP retained the Dhamnagar seat in the November 3 bypoll as its candidate Suryabanshi Suraj won by 9,881 votes, in a major setback to the BJD.

BJP's Purohit claimed that the BJD was trying to poach from the Congress as it was unable to find a candidate for Padmapur.

He claimed that he lost the 2019 election as the Congress transferred around 10,000 votes to BJD.

The last date for filing nominations for the Padmapur bypoll is November 17, and the scrutiny will be held on November 18. The last date for the withdrawal of candidature is November 21.