Bhubaneswar: While the BJP is all set to dethrone the BJD in Odisha and form the state government, three independent candidates defeated 3 BJD nominees, adding insult to the injury of the regional party.

The BJD faced such embarrassing defeats in Baramba, Dharmasala, and Mahanga assembly constituencies, where Debiprasad Mishra, Pranab Balabantaray, and Ankita Jena lost the polls, respectively.

Independent candidate Bijaya Kumar Dalabehera defeated six-time Baramba MLA Debiprasad Mishra in the constituency with a margin of 23479 votes. While Mishra had secured the seat in 1995, 2000, 2004, 2009, 2014, and 2019, Dalabehera managed to stop the winning streak.

As many as 86018 votes were polled in the favour of the independent candidate while Mishra got 62539 votes.

In Dharmasala, Pranab Balabantaray, the two-time MLA from the seat, was defeated by independent candidate Himanshu Sekhar Sahoo by a margin of 4150 votes. Balabantaray had won the seat in 2014 and 2019.

Sahoo got 79759 votes while 75609 votes were polled in favour of Balabantaray.

Similarly, Ankit Jena, son of BJD leader Pratap Jena, was defeated by independent candidate Sarada Prasad Pradhan with a margin of 7423 votes. Pradhan and Jena got 88632 and 81209 votes, respectively.

Ankit's father Pratap Jena had successfully contested polls from the assembly constituency in 2009, 2014, and 2019.

Notably, the BJP is all set to create history in Odisha as the saffron party is most likely to form government in the state for the very first time.

This will also mark the end of 24 years of governance in Odisha by the Naveen Patnaik-led BJD government.