The quiet and remote Nuapada town in Odisha is set to witness an intense high-profile campaign ahead of the bypoll on November 11, with the BJP, Congress and BJD lining up an array of heavyweight leaders, including three chief ministers, three former CMs and three Union ministers, to woo voters.
Among the star campaigners are Odisha's BJP CM Mohan Charan Majhi, Telangana's Congress CM A Revanth Reddy and Chhattisgarh's BJP CM Vishnu Deo Sai. Three former Chief Ministers will also join the campaign: Naveen Patnaik and Giridhar Gamang of Odisha, and Bhupesh Baghel of Chhattisgarh. Patnaik currently heads the opposition BJD, while Gamang and Baghel belong to the Congress.
The BJP has also listed three Union Ministers — Dharmendra Pradhan, Ashwini Vaishnaw, and Jual Oram — as key campaigners. Odisha’s two Deputy CMs, KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida, will campaign for the BJP candidate.
The Congress campaign will be bolstered by Telangana Deputy CM Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka and Rajasthan's former Deputy CM Sachin Pilot, alongside former JNU students' union president Kanhaiya Kumar and AICC's state in-charge Ajay Kumar Lallu. The Congress list also includes the chiefs of the party's women, youth, and student wings: Alka Lamba, Uday Bhanu Chib, and Varun Choudhury.
The by-election was necessitated by the death of BJD MLA Rajendra Dholakia on September 8. The BJP has fielded Jay Dholakia, the late MLA’s son. The BJD has nominated its women's wing president, Snehangini Chhuria. The Congress has put forward veteran leader Ghasiram Majhi.
The campaign trail will also see actor-turned-politicians Sidhant Mahapatra, Anubhav Mohanty, and Akash Das Nayak, all previously associated with the BJD, returning to the hustings, this time campaigning for the BJP.
The campaign is expected to gather full momentum after Diwali and the completion of nominations on October 20th. Nuapada has an electorate of over 2.53 lakh voters.
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