Odisha Congress may release its first list of candidates by Tuesday Evening

Bhubaneswar: Odisha Congress on Monday said it will release the list of its nominees very soon. According to sources, the party is likely to release its first list on Tuesday evening.
While the ruling Biju Janta Dal (BJD) and main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have announced their candidates for some of the seats, Congress is yet to declare any name. Also the BJP is yet to release its first list of candidates for the Assembly election.
Odisha Pradesh Congress Committee (PCC) president Sarat Pattnayak said that the grand old party will announce its candidates very soon. The list is ready and the party is all set to announce the candidates after final approval, he said.
Pattnayak confirmed that both the screening and Central Election Committee (CEC) meetings have convened, paving the way for the imminent declaration of Congress candidates across both Assembly and Lok Sabha constituencies in Odisha.
There’s a likelihood that the party will disclose the initial batch of candidates as early as Tuesday evening, he hinted. The state Congress has already furnished the candidate roster to the CEC for its conclusive approval.
The mode of release—whether the entire slate of candidates for all seats will be revealed at once or in phases—remains uncertain.
Earlier assertions by Congress leaders had projected the candidate list’s release by the first week of March, but strategic deliberations were deferred amidst speculation surrounding a potential BJD-BJP alliance for the state polls. However, the suspense surrounding the alliance was dispelled after both parties confirmed their intent to contest independently, without any collaborative arrangement.