Bhubaneswar, (Reorterspen), Aug 21: Mamata Mohanta today filed her nomination for the Rajya Sabha by-election before the returning officer at the Odisha Assembly in Bhubaneswar. She was accompanied by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, BJP state unit president Manmohan Samal, and Odisha in-charge Vijaypal Singh Tomar.
The BJP officially nominated Mamata for the Rajya Sabha seat on Tuesday, which became vacant after she resigned from the Upper House. She had been appointed by the then-ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) on April 3, 2020, with 18 months remaining on her six-year term. Mamata, a tribal leader from the Kudumi community of Mayurbhanj district, resigned from the BJD on July 31, citing neglect, and joined the BJP the following day.
Mamata is expected to win the seat comfortably, given that the BJP holds 78 seats in the 147-member Odisha Assembly and has the support of three Independent MLAs. The BJD and Congress have 51 and 14 seats, respectively, and the Opposition lacks the numbers to challenge the BJP.
The Rajya Sabha election for the 12 vacant seats, including the Odisha seat, is scheduled for September 3. Currently, Odisha has one BJP member in the Rajya Sabha, Ashwini Vaishnaw, who was elected earlier this year with support from the BJD.
