More than half of the 2.53 lakh registered voters had cast their votes by 1 pm on Tuesday in the by-election to the Nuapada Assembly seat.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who visited Nuapada at least six times during the campaign, is treating the contest as a matter of prestige.
Polling began at 7 am across all 358 booths, including 47 marked as sensitive, under tight security measures.
More than half of the 2.53 lakh registered voters had cast their votes by 1 pm on Tuesday in the by-election to the Nuapada Assembly seat, an official confirmed.
Although the result of the bypoll will not alter the composition of the state government, it carries strong political importance for all three key parties, the ruling BJP, the opposition BJD, and the Congress. This is the first electoral face-off in Odisha since the BJP formed its maiden government last year.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, who visited Nuapada at least six times during the campaign, is treating the contest as a matter of prestige. The poll is equally viewed as a barometer of BJD president Naveen Patnaik’s continuing influence in state politics.
Polling began at 7 am across all 358 booths, including 47 marked as sensitive, under tight security measures. According to election officials, 51.42 per cent of the electorate had voted by 1 pm.
Voting was briefly interrupted at the Mongarapali polling station on Khariar Road due to a technical malfunction but resumed soon after. The glitch was fixed promptly, with three ballot units (BUs) and three control units (CUs) being replaced, the official said.
The by-election was called following the death of sitting BJD MLA Rajendra Dholakia on September 8. To retain the seat, the BJD has nominated Snehangini Chhuria, while the BJP has fielded Jay Dholakia, son of the late legislator.
The Congress, out of power in Odisha since 2000, is banking on veteran tribal leader Ghasiram Majhi. Majhi was the runner-up in the 2024 Assembly election, securing over 50,000 votes.
Chief Electoral Officer R.S. Gopalan told reporters that voting was progressing smoothly across all polling stations, and no untoward incidents had been reported till 1.30 pm.
According to the District Election Officer (DEO), two poll officials were suspended for violating voting secrecy norms. They were identified as Sandeep Kumar Swain, a school teacher serving as the presiding officer at Government Upgraded High School, Biromal, and Dhananjay Mallick, the presiding officer at Kuliabandh Government School.
During the 2024 state Assembly election, Nuapada had recorded a voter turnout of 75.44 per cent.
With PTI inputs
