Dhamnagar By-Poll: Notification Released By Sub-Collector Office

Dhamnagar: The Dhamnagar Assembly constituency received the notification for the by-election from the office of Sub-Collector, Bhadrak on Friday. The death of incumbent BJP MLA Bishnu Charan Sethi, who passed away, last month at 62 while receiving treatment at AIIMS-Bhubaneswar, has forced the need for a by-election.

The deadline for candidate nominations is October 14. Between 11 AM and 3 PM, candidates can submit their nominations at the Block Development Office (BDO).

Likewise, October 15 and 17 have been set aside as the deadlines for withdrawing candidature and the date for the inspection of nominations, respectively. On November 3, voting will take place from 7 AM to 6 PM. On November 6, 2022, the votes will be counted and the results will be announced.

On the other hand, no parties have thus far made their candidates’ names public. However, rumours are circulating that the BJD may field one of its former MLAs, including Rajendra Das, Muktikanta Mondal, Dr. Sanjay Das, and former Dhamnagar block chairman Ashok Nayak. While Sanjay Das is a fresh face, Rajendra Das served as an Assembly member from the district in 2009 and ran unsuccessfully for the position in 2019. Similarly, MuktikantaMondal’s wife is the current MP from the Bhadrak Parliamentary constituency and he served as the district’s MLA in 2014.

Similar to how Bidyadhar Jena, the Congress’ candidate for Dhamnagar in 2019, hopes to receive the party’s nomination, senior party official Ananta Sethy and his daughter Madhumita Sethy are reportedly also vying for the position. Suryabansi Suraj, the son of Bishnu Charan Sethi, is the BJP’s candidate for the Dhamnagar by-election, according to reports, and the party is allegedly prepared to contest the by-election.