The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) seems to emerge victorious in the Jharsuguda assembly constituency by-polls as counting concluded on Saturday. BJD candidate Dipali Das is leading by a significant margin of 48,619 votes, securing a total of 107003 votes so far, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) secured 58384 votes. The Congress, on the other hand, managed to secure only 4473 votes.
The by-poll for the Jharsuguda assembly constituency was conducted on May 10, with a voter turnout of 79.21 percent out of the 2.21 lakh eligible voters. The by-poll was necessitated following the alleged assassination of the state’s health minister, Naba Kisore Das, on January 29, by a police officer.
Deepali Das, daughter of the late Naba Kishore Das, who was a former minister and MLA, contested the Jharsuguda by-poll after her father’s unfortunate demise.
Out of the nine candidates in the fray, the contest was primarily between three nominees – Deepali Das of the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Tarun Pandey of the Congress, and Tankadhar Tripathy of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Despite the tough competition, Deepali Das emerged as the clear winner, securing a significant lead over her opponents.
The results of the by-poll in Jharsuguda are unlikely to affect the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government led by Naveen Patnaik, as the party enjoys a comfortable majority in the 147-member Odisha Assembly. Currently, the BJD holds 113 seats, while the opposition BJP and Congress have 22 and 9 MLAs, respectively. The CPI (M) has one member, and there is one independent legislator.
(With PTI inputs)
