Bhubaneswar: Ending all speculations, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Wednesday fielded Jay Dholakia as its candidate for the upcoming by-election to the Nuapada Assembly Constituency in Odisha.
He is set to file his nomination on Thursday, officially kicking off the party’s campaign in the constituency.
Jay, son of late BJD MLA Rajendra Dholakia, had joined the saffron party on October 11. Ever since, speculations were rife that the BJP would nominate him for the bypoll in Nuapada.
Expressing gratitude for being inducted into the BJP, Jay Dholakia had said he joined the party to help fulfil the vision of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, and above all, his late father Rajendra Dholakia, for the development of remote regions like Nuapada.
While the Congress has already named noted tribal leader Ghasiram Majhi as its candidate, the BJD is yet to announce its nominee for the by-election.
The Nuapada by-election will take place on November 11, with counting of votes scheduled for November 14.
The deadline for filing nominations is October 20. Scrutiny of papers will be conducted on October 22, and the last date for withdrawal of nominations is October 24.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi is set to lead a mega rally in Nuapada the same day and will be present during the nomination filing process. “More than 2,000 workers from the BJD and Congress are expected to join the BJP during the rally,” a senior BJP leader said.
Jay has the support of the people and will take forward the work being done by his father, a four-time MLA from the constituency, he said.
The by-election was necessitated following the demise of the sitting MLA Rajendra Dholakia on September 8.
Meanwhile, the BJD, which has held the Nuapada seat since 2009 – except 2014 – under the leadership of late Rajendra Dholakia, is grappling to finalise a candidate after Jay switched sides to the BJP on October 11. Sources indicate that the party may field senior leader Manoj Mishra in the bypoll.
The Nuapada bypoll will be held on November 11, coinciding with the second phase of the Bihar Assembly elections and by-elections in six other Assembly constituencies across India.
In the 2024 assembly election, Dholakia retained the seat with 61,822 votes, while Congress rebel Ghasiram Majhi, who contested as an Independent, polled 50,941 votes, emerging as a close runner-up. The Congress’s official nominee, Sarat Pattanayak, lagged far behind with 15,501 votes, while the BJP candidate Abhinandan Panda finished third, managing just over 440,814 votes.
