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Odisha By-poll
Senior BJD leader Amar Patnaik joined the ruling BJP in Odisha on Monday. Patnaik, the IT Cell head of the BJD and its spokesperson, switched sides days ahead of the Nuapada by-election on November 11. A former account general, he joined the BJP as BJD president Naveen Patnaik started campaigning for the by-election. Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, state BJP president Manmohan Samal and its Odisha in-charge Vijay Pal Singh Tomar welcomed him to the party. "I joined the BJP to serve the nation. I quit my government job in 2018 and became an MP in 2019. So far, I have worked for the development of the state, and now the time has come to dedicate myself to the nation," Patnaik said. "Therefore, I think, BJP is the right party to serve the nation," he added.
Nearly 76 per cent of 2.57 lakh voters on Monday exercised their franchise till 5 pm in the by-poll to Odisha's Padampur assembly constituency, an Election Commission official said. The voting, which began at 7 am, continued beyond the scheduled close at 4 pm as several people were in queue in 89 of the 319 polling stations, he said. The boundary gates of all the booths, however, were closed at 4 pm, the official said. There was no report of any untoward incident in the entire Padampur assembly constituency during the voting process, Odisha's Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) S K Lohani said. A total of 2.57 lakh voters, including 12 members of the transgender community, are eligible to exercise their franchise in the by-poll. Around 1,400 police personnel and nine companies of central paramilitary forces have been deployed for the by-election, the official said. There are 10 candidates in the fray for the by-poll. The ruling BJD fielded Barsha Singh Bariha, the daughter of Bijay Ra