Mamata Mohanta wins RS bypoll unopposed.
Bhubaneswar: BJP candidate Mamata Mohanta Tuesday returned to the Rajya Sabha after winning unopposed in the by-election, which was necessitated by her resignation as a BJD MP and switching sides. Mohanta was declared elected unopposed as there was no can- didate in the fray when the dead- line for withdrawal of nomina- tions ended, officials said.
The Opposition BJD and Congress did not field any can- didates. However, BJP fielded Jagannath Pradhan as a ‘dummy candidate’, but he withdrew his nomination pa- pers before the end of the dead- line, paving the way for Mohanta’s re-election.
Chief Minister Maohan Charan Majhi congratulated Mohanta in the Assembly after the result was declared. Mohanta, a leader of the Kudumi community from Mayurbhanj district, had quit the BJD and resigned as its Rajya Sabha MP in July with 18 months left of her tenure, forcing the by- poll. She switched over to the BJP, which nominated her as its candidate.
