Nuapada: Ghasiram Majhi today said he would file his nomination papers as the Congress candidate for the upcoming Nuapada Assembly by-election on October 18.

Majhi, who contested the 2024 elections as an Independent candidate, had then secured the second position. He had received around 51,000 votes, powered by the support of the local tribal association.

In the 2024 polls, Majhi was among the aspirants for a Congress ticket but was denied one. The then OPCC president, Sarat Pattanayak, was fielded as the party candidate instead.

In a related development, the BJP today fielded Jay Dholakia as its candidate for the upcoming bypoll. Jay, son of late BJD MLA Rajendra Dholakia, had joined the saffron party on October 11. Ever since, speculations were rife that the BJP would nominate him.

On the other hand, the BJD is likely to announce its candidate for the bypoll in the evening.

The Nuapada Bypoll will take place on November 11, with counting of votes scheduled for November 14.

The deadline for filing nominations is October 20. Scrutiny of papers will be conducted on October 22, and the last date for withdrawal of nominations is October 24.

The bypoll was necessitated after the demise of sitting BJD MLA Rajendra Dholakia, a former minister and four-time legislator from Nuapada, who died on September 8, 2025, at the age of 69.

In the 2024 Assembly elections, Rajendra Dholakia had secured 61822 votes, defeating Ghasiram Majhi by a margin of 10881 votes.