Bhubaneswar: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Tuesday announced its support for senior leader Dilip Ray, who has declared his candidacy as an independent for the upcoming Rajya Sabha election.
State BJP president Manmohan Samal, speaking at a news conference at the party office, said the Odisha unit has decided on principle to back Ray. “Dilip Ray will make his own efforts, and the party will extend full support. He will certainly emerge victorious,” Samal said.
Ray earlier announced that he would contest as an independent candidate and may file his nomination March 5. He said he had discussed the matter with both state and central leadership before making the decision.
Also Read: BJD names Datteswar Hota, Santrupt Mishra for Rajya Sabha polls
Meanwhile, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) has named Santosh Kumar Mishra as its candidate and also announced Datteshwar Hota as a common candidate for the Rajya Sabha polls.
The BJP has also declared the names of state president Manmohan Samal and Sujit Kumar in connection with the election process.
