Lok Sabha Elections: Congress Names Four Candidates From Odisha, West Bengal

The party fielded Dulal Chandra Pradhan from Sambalpur, Binod Bihari Nayak from Keonjhar, Debokanta Sarma from Aska, and Urbashi Bhattacharya from Kanthi.

New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday released a list of four candidates from Odisha and West Bengal for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The party fielded Dulal Chandra Pradhan from Sambalpur, Binod Bihari Nayak from Keonjhar, Debokanta Sarma from Aska, and Urbashi Bhattacharya from Kanthi.

Earlier this week, the Congress announced its candidates for Lok Sabha constituencies in Godda, Chatra, and Dhanbad. AICC General Secretary K C Venugopal made the announcement, stating that Legislator Deepika Pandey Singh, Krishna Nand Tripathi, and Anupama Singh would contest for the seats in Godda, Chatra, and Dhanbad, respectively.

Deepika Pandey Singh is set to challenge the incumbent BJP MP Nishikant Dubey in Godda, while Anupama Singh, wife of Bermo MLA Kumar Jaimangal Singh, will contest against BJP's Baghmara legislator Dulu Mahto in Dhanbad. Notably, the BJP has replaced its current MP Pashupati Nath Singh in Dhanbad with Mahato, who faces numerous criminal charges and was previously an MLA under the Jharkhand Vikash Morcha (JVM).

Furthermore, the party has nominated J P Agarwal for Chandni Chowk and Kanhaiya Kumar for North East Delhi. Kanhaiya will be facing BJP's candidate Manoj Tiwari, while JP Agarwal will contest against BJP candidate Praveen Khandelwal.

Additionally, Vikramaditya Singh has been fielded from Himachal Pradesh’s Mandi, where he will contest against BJP candidate and Bollywood actor Kangana Ranaut. Manish Tewari has been given a ticket from Chandigarh.

The first list, released on March 8, included 39 names, featuring prominent leaders like Bhupesh Bhaghel, Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal, Shashi Tharoor, and DK Suresh. Following that, the party unveiled its second list on March 12, comprising 43 candidates.

The second list had notable names such as Nakul Nath from Madhya Pradesh's Chhindwara and Vaibhav Gehlot from Rajasthan's Jalore. Among these, Gaurav Gogoi, the deputy leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha, was nominated to contest from Assam's Jorhat, while sitting MP Pradyut Bordoloi will represent Nagaon.