Bhubaneswar: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Debashish Samantaray was on Thursday declared elected unopposed to the Rajya Sabha from Odisha, after the withdrawal deadline for nominations ended with no other contenders in the fray for the by-election.
The Election Commission of India (ECI) had set June 18 as the polling date for the bypoll if required. However, with no rival candidates filing or remaining in the contest following scrutiny on June 9 and the withdrawal deadline on June 11, Samantaray’s victory was confirmed without a vote.
Samantaray, a former Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader and three-time MLA, had resigned from the Rajya Sabha and quit the regional party on May 25. He joined the BJP the very next day, May 26, in New Delhi, where he was welcomed by senior leaders including BJP National President Nitin Nabin, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Originally elected to the Upper House in February 2024 as a BJD nominee with his term slated to run until April 2030, Samantaray’s move created a vacancy leading to the by-election for the remaining tenure. BJP fielded him as its candidate shortly after he joined, and he filed his nomination papers on June 5 in the presence of CM Majhi, state BJP president Manmohan Samal, and other leaders. His nominations were scrutinised and found valid.
Samantaray’s unopposed re-election ensures he continues representing Odisha in the Rajya Sabha until April 2030, now under the BJP banner.
In a familiar political playbook, the saffron party last year engineered a seamless transition for former BJD MPs Sujeet Kumar and Mamata Mohanta. After jumping ship to BJP, both leaders successfully reclaimed the Rajya Sabha seats they had just vacated.
Following a series of defections and recent biennial elections, the BJD’s strength in the Upper House has come down to five, while BJP’s representation has gone up to five from one.
