Bhubaneswar: The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) in Odisha has directed the Collectors of Sambalpur and Khurda to probe the allegations of poll code violation levelled against Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, Sambalpur MLA Jaynarayan Mishra and Bhubaneswar MP Aparajita Sarangi ahead of the simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in the state.

The CEO asked the two Collectors to submit the probe reports within 24 hours.

Representatives of Biju Janata Dal (BJD) had earlier lodged separate complaints against Pradhan, Mishra and Sarangi for allegedly violating the Model Code of Conducts (MCCs) while campaigning for 2024 polls in the state.

In its complaint, the BJD alleged that Pradhan, the BJP nominee for Sambalpur Lok Sabha seat, and party MLA Jaynarayan Mishra had held a meeting on the premises of a government office in the western Odisha town on April 20 in violation of the MCC.

The BJD also alleged that Pradhan and Mishra had held a meeting with the officers and cadets of NCC by flouting the poll code.

In a separate complaint, the BJD alleged that Sarangi, the BJP nominee for Bhubaneswar, had used some children for BJP campaign ahead of the polls.