Bhubaneswar: Ollywood actress Zeena Samal resigned from the BJP after reportedly being denied a ticket for Assembly polls in Odisha.

The actress has tendered her resignation letter to Odisha BJP president Manmohan Samal.

Reports said that Zeena was an aspirant to get the party ticket for Bhograi Assembly seat. After the BJP fielded Ashish Patra for the seat, the actress decided to quit the party.

Zeena and her husband Rudra Panigrahi had joined the BJP in March 2023. The couple was inducted into the saffron party along with more than 80 persons in the presence of Balasore Lok Sabha Member Pratap Sarangi at a programme in Balasore last year.

Soon after quitting the saffron party, Zeena formally joined the BJD in the presence of Rajya Sabha Member Sasmit Patra at Shankha Bhawan in Bhubaneswar.

"It's my good fortune to have joined the BJD, the party that respects women. I am impressed with the developmental work carried out under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in Odisha. I thank CM Naveen Patnaik for inducting me to this party. I wish to be part of those developments and would contribute whatever required for the development of the state," she said after joining the regional party here.