Bhubaneswar: Nominees of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD), Santrupt Misra and Dr. Datteswar Hota, filed their nomination papers on Thursday for the upcoming Rajya Sabha elections in Odisha.

The nominations were filed at the State Legislative Assembly in the presence of BJD president and former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Odisha Congress president Bhakta Charan Das.

"I am very glad to announce that two candidates of the BJD -- Santrupt Misra and Dr Datteswar Hota -- have filed their nominations for Rajya Sabha elections. I congratulate both of them," Patnaik told reporters. 

When asked about alliance with Congress, he said, "Time always tells future history." 

Congress extends support to BJD’s common candidate

The presence of the Odisha Congress chief during the nomination process underscored the party’s support for Dr. Hota, whom the BJD has announced as a common candidate for the Rajya Sabha polls.

The OPCC president described Naveen Patnaik’s decision to pursue a secular understanding with the Indian National Congress as “historic.”

“As I told Naveen Patnaik, this decision reminds me of the kind of choices your father, Biju Patnaik, used to make. During his time in Delhi, Biju Babu often took such bold political decisions, and national leaders would readily accept them,” Das told reporters.

However, he sidestepped questions from the media regarding a possible BJD–Congress secular alliance for the upcoming Panchayat elections in Odisha, saying the matter would be discussed at an appropriate time later.

Prior to filing the nominations, leaders from the BJD and the Indian National Congress reportedly held a closed-door meeting to discuss the election strategy.

Four Rajya Sabha seats from Odisha falling vacant

In Odisha, four Rajya Sabha seats are set to fall vacant following the completion of the terms of BJP MPs Sujeet Kumar and Mamata Mohanta, and BJD MPs Niranjan Bishi and Muzibulla Khan alias Munna Khan.

Based on the current strength of MLAs in the Odisha Assembly, two BJP candidates and one BJD candidate are expected to win comfortably, while the fourth seat is likely to witness a keen political contest.

BJD fields Santrupt Misra and Dr. Datteswar Hota

The BJD has nominated entrepreneur-turned-politician Santrupt Misra and noted urologist Dr. Datteswar Hota for the third and fourth seats in the Rajya Sabha elections scheduled for March 16.

BJP announces two candidates

Meanwhile, the Central Election Committee of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has approved the names of Sujeet Kumar and Manmohan Samal as the party’s candidates for the Upper House from Odisha.

Sujeet Kumar is currently serving as a Rajya Sabha MP from the state, while Manmohan Samal is the president of the Odisha BJP unit.

Dilip Ray to contest as Independent candidate

Adding another dimension to the contest, senior politician Dilip Ray has announced that he will contest the election as an Independent candidate, with the BJP extending its support to him.

Ray is expected to file his nomination today to challenge BJD’s common candidate Dr. Hota, making the race for the fourth seat politically significant.