Nuapada: Polling began for the bypoll to the Nuapada Assembly constituency on Tuesday morning amid tight security. The bypoll was necessitated due to the death of four-time MLA Rajendra Dholakia on September 8. Voting started at 7 AM across 358 booths and will continue till 5 PM. However, in 47 polling stations located in remote and Maoist-affected pockets, polling will end an hour earlier, at 4 PM, to ensure the safe return of polling staff. A total of 2.53 lakh voters are eligible to exercise their franchise in the constituency. Dholakia’s son Jay Dholakia is contesting the bypoll on a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket while former minister Snehnagini Chhuria is trying her luck as a BJD nominee. Tribal leader Ghasiram Majhi is the Congress candidate for the bypoll.
Apart from the candidates of the three major political parties in Odisha, Ramakanta Hati of the Samajwadi Party, Hemant Tandi of the Bahujan Mukti Party, and Shukadhar Dandsena of the Odisha Janata Dal, along with eight Independent candidates-- Ashraya Mahandan, Chakranta Jena, Bhuvan Lal Sahu, Kishore Kumar Bag, Nita Bag, Lakshmikant Tandi, Bhaktabandhu Dharua, and Lochan Majhi-- are contesting the bypoll. To ensure peaceful polling, authorities have put in place a multi-layered security system. Fourteen companies of the central armed police forces, supported by the state police, have been deployed throughout the constituency. Special attention has been given to 47 sensitive and eight highly sensitive booths.