Kanhaiya Kumar, one of 40 prominent Congress campaigners for Jharsuguda bypoll
The Congress has released a list of 40 star campaigners for the Jharsuguda bypoll on May 10, including Odisha party in-charge A Chella Kumar, OPCC president Sarat Patnaik, other senior state leaders, and its new member Kanhaiya Kumar.
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Jharsuguda: The Congress has released a list of 40 star campaigners for the Jharsuguda bypoll on May 10, including Odisha party in-charge A Chella Kumar, OPCC president Sarat Patnaik, other senior state leaders, and its new member Kanhaiya Kumar.
Tarun Pandey (45), son of late MLA Biren Pandey, has been nominated as the party's candidate for the by-election. Last month, the three-time MLA died in a private hospital in Bhubaneswar.
The Congress is in a do-or-die situation, having lost deposits in five byelections since 2019. With its vote share and number of seats falling precipitously in successive elections since 2004, the grand old party is struggling to remain relevant in state politics.
Both the Congress and the BJD, which have named Deepali Das, the daughter of slain minister Naba Kishore Das, whose alleged murder on January 29 prompted the bypoll, hope to capitalize on the sympathy wave over their candidates' "personal loss."
Tankadhar Tripathy is the BJP's candidate in the byelection, which is expected to set the tone for the big fight in 2024.
