Overview

• The BJD announced a six-member steering committee led by senior figures Prasanna Acharya, Niranjan Pujari, Snehangini Chhuria, Tukuni Sahoo, Niranjan Bisi and Md. Ayub Khan.
• A zonal committee assigned Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo and Sarada Nayak to Nuapada NAC and Rohit Pujari and Bikram Panda to Khariar NAC, with additional leaders mapped to zilla parishad zones.
• A local action committee featuring Adhiraj Panigrahi, Abani Joshi and Manoj Mishra will coordinate booth-level work.
• The Congress has named Ghasiram Majhi as its candidate, while the BJP says its nominee will be announced soon after a core committee meeting, with names such as Basant Panda, Abhinandan Panda and Jadumani Panigrahi under discussion.
• The bypoll follows the September 8 death of four-time MLA Rajendra Dholakia, and a senior BJD leader has hinted the party may consider fielding his son.