New Delhi: A day after the Election Commission of India (ECI) announced the schedule for the Nuapada Assembly bye-election, the Congress party declared its candidate for the contest.

In an official statement, the All India Congress Committee (AICC) said Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has approved the candidature of Ghasiram Majhi for the upcoming bye-election.

The bye-election was necessitated following the demise of sitting Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLA Rajendra Dholakia, a four-time legislator and former minister, who passed away on September 8, 2025, at the age of 69.

In the 2024 Assembly elections, Dholakia had retained the Nuapada seat with a margin of over 10,000 votes, defeating BJP candidate Abhinandan Panda.

Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar announced on Monday that polling for the bye-election will be held on November 11, and counting will take place on November 14. The election notification will be issued on October 13, while the last date for filing nominations is October 20. Scrutiny of papers will be conducted on October 22, and the final date for withdrawal of nominations is October 24. Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi were also present during the announcement.

With the declaration of the bye-election schedule, the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) has come into effect in the constituency.

The Nuapada Assembly constituency has 1,22,103 male voters, 1,26,132 female voters, along with 4,000 differently-abled and 2,007 senior citizen voters.