BJP’s Jagannath Pradhan Files Independent Nomination for Odisha Rajya Sabha Bypoll

Bhubaneswar: In a notable political turn, BJP leader Jagannath Pradhan has entered the fray for the upcoming Rajya Sabha bypoll in Odisha by filing his nomination as an independent candidate today.

Pradhan, who unsuccessfully contested the Bhubaneswar Central seat in this year’s Assembly elections, submitted his nomination just an hour after BJP’s official candidate Mamata Mohanta filed hers with the returning officer at the Odisha Assembly.

Mamata Mohanta, originally elected to the Rajya Sabha under the BJD banner in April 2020 with a tenure extending until April 2026, resigned from both the Upper House and the primary membership of the BJD on July 31. The following day, she joined the BJP in New Delhi, necessitating the upcoming bypoll scheduled on September 3.

Accompanied by prominent leaders including Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, BJP Odisha in-charge Vijaypal Singh Tomar and state unit president Manmohan Samal, Mohanta officially filed her nomination at the Assembly secretariat earlier today.