Barsha Singh Bariha takes oath as Padampur MLA
Barsha Singh Bariha takes oath as Padampur MLA
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Bhubaneswar: Barsha Singh Bariha of the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) was sworn in as a Member of the Legislative Assembly on Monday (MLA). Speaker Bikram Keshari Arukha gave the oath at the Odisha Assembly's official chamber.
Barsha Singh Bariha, the eldest daughter of late MLA Bijay Ranjan Singh Bariha, whose death in October prompted the Padampur by-election, defeated BJP's Pradip Purohit by 42,679 votes.
Barsha received 1,20,807 (58%) votes, BJP candidate Pradeep Purohit received 78,128 (37.51%) votes, while Congress candidate Satya Bhusan Sahu lost his security deposit after receiving only 3,594 (1.73%) votes. The byelection was held on December 5, and the results were declared on December 8.
Barsha is the daughter-in-law of senior BJP leader Rama Ranjan Baliarsingh, who was elected as an independent from the Satyabadi constituency in Puri district in 2004. Baliarsingh later joined the BJD before joining the BJP in 2019.
Barsha, a law graduate from Bengaluru, beat off three other members of her family to secure the party ticket. Bariha's widow Tilottama Singh, younger daughter Kadambini, and Madhabi Singh Bariha's daughter were also interested in running.
After a three-year hiatus, BJD president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik campaigned for a party nominee, claiming that he did so to stand by her side as a father figure, brother, and friend in the face of personal and vicious accusations from the BJP.
