Bhubaneswar: Sons of several prominent politicians of Odisha will make their electoral debut in the upcoming simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly polls in the state.

They will try their luck from different Lok Sabha and Assembly segments as nominees of three major parities—BJD, BJP and Congress—in the upcoming twin polls.

The Congress party has picked Pruthvi Ballav Patnaik, the son of late Chief Minister JB Patnaik, for Begunia Assembly seat in Khurda district.

JB Patnaik was a three-time Chief Minister and one of the tallest Congress leaders in Odisha.

The Congress party has also given ticket to Jatni MLA and former minister Suresh Kumar Routray’s elder son Siddharth Routray from Nimapara Assembly seat in Puri district.

Routray, a six-time Congress MLA, has been expelled from the party recently.

The ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD), on the other hand, fielded Routray’s younger son Manmath from Bhubaneswar Lok Sabha constituency for the 2024 Parliamentary polls.

Manmath, a trained pilot, will take on BJP’s national spokesperson and sitting MP Aparajita Sarangi from Bhubaneswar seat.

The Naveen Patnaik-led BJD has nominated Arabinda Mohapatra, the son of former minister Bijoy Mohapatra, from Patkura Assembly seat in Kendrapara district.

Bijoy was a cabinet minister in the Janata Dal government under legendary leader Biju Patnaik from 1990 to 1995. He had been elected to Odisha Assembly from Patkura several times in the past.

Late minister Surjya Narayan Patro’s son Biplab Patro will make his electoral debut from Digapahandi Assembly seat in Ganjam district on a BJD ticket in the 2024 polls.

Surjya Narayan had also acted as the Speaker of Odisha Assembly for a few years. Biplab has been pitted against actor-turned-politician and BJP nominee Siddhant Mohapatra from Digapahandi.

Senior BJD leader and Urban Development Minister Usha Devi’s son Chinmayananda Srirup Deb is now fighting the polls from Chikiti Assembly seat in Ganjam.

Rabindra Nath Dyan Samantara, the son of former Odisha Assembly Speaker Chintamani Dyan Samantara, has been nominated by the Congress party to fight the polls from Chikiti seat. However, Rabindra’s younger brother Manoranjan is contesting from the same seat on a BJP ticket.

Mahanga MLA and former minister Pratap Jena’s son Ankit Jena is all set to try his luck from the same seat on a BJD ticket.

Pratap has been elected from Mahanga seat several times and he was also a minister for several years.

The ruling party in Odisha has nominated Sunil Mohanty, the son of late minister Maheswar Mohanty, from Puri Assembly constituency. Sunil will take on sitting MLA and BJP nominee Jayanta Sarangi in the upcoming polls.

Abhinandan Panda, the son of senior BJP leader and Kalahandi MP Basanta Panda, will make his electoral debut from Nuapada Assembly seat.

Abhinandan, as BJP nominee, has been pitted against Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (OPCC) president Sarat Pattanayak from Nuapada.