Congress Announces Puri LS Candidate To Challenge BJP's Sambit Patra After Sucharita Mohanty Returns Ticket

Sucharita Mohanty, who was nominated as the Congress candidate for the Puri LS constituency, has decided not to contest the upcoming elections, citing insufficient financial support from the party.

File Photo of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge with party leader Rahul Gandhi. ( Image Source :PTI )

New Delhi: Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday approved Jay Narayan Patnaik as the party's candidate for the Puri parliamentary constituency in Odisha, replacing Sucharita Mohanty. Sucharita Mohanty, who was nominated as the Congress candidate for the Puri Lok Sabha constituency, has decided not to contest the upcoming elections, citing insufficient financial support from the party. 

Odisha | Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge approved the candidature of Jay Narayan Patnaik (in place of Sucharita Mohanty) as party candidate from the Puri parliamentary constituency for the Lok Sabha elections. pic.twitter.com/5ApXRYCg3G

— ANI (@ANI) May 4, 2024

Mohanty had been fielded by the Congress against BJP's Sambit Patra and BJD's Arup Patnaik, a former Mumbai Police Commissioner, in the upcoming elections.

Sucharita Mohanty Returns Ticket Over Lack Of Funding, Criticises Congress's Odisha Assembly Picks

In a letter addressed to AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, Mohanty expressed her concerns regarding the lack of funding for her campaign, stating that it has severely impacted her ability to effectively compete in the constituency. She alleged that despite being asked to contest by AICC Odisha in-charge Ajoy Kumar, she was expected to finance her campaign independently, reported PTI.

 

 

Elections to the Puri Lok Sabha constituency will be held on May 25.

 

"I was a salaried professional journalist who entered electoral politics 10 years ago. I have given all I have into my campaign in Puri. I tried a public donation drive to support my campaign for progressive politics without much success so far. I also tried to cut down the projected campaign spending to the minimum", she said.

 

As she was not able to raise funds on her own, the Congress leader had approached all senior leaders including the party's central leadership for funds for an impactful campaign in the Puri Lok Sabha constituency.

 

"It is clear that only fund crunch is holding us back from a winning campaign in Puri. I regret that without party funding, it won't be possible to carry out the campaign in Puri. I, therefore, return the party ticket for the Puri Lok Sabha constituency herewith", she said in her mail to the AICC.

 

Despite facing challenges with campaign funding, Sucharita Mohanty reaffirmed her loyalty to the Congress party and expressed her unwavering support for party leader Rahul Gandhi. Addressing the media, Mohanty emphasised that she will remain committed to the party despite being denied financial support for her electoral campaign in the Puri Lok Sabha constituency.

 

She criticised the allocation of tickets to what she perceived as weaker candidates in the assembly segments under Puri, contrasting it with the apparent financial resources available to rival parties like the BJP and BJD.

 

The Congress leader said she wanted a people-oriented campaign but that was also not possible with the lack of funds. She pointed out the imposition of restrictions on expenditure and the freezing of bank accounts, further complicating the situation for the Congress.

 

Ajoy Kumar, the AICC in-charge of Odisha, responded to Mohanty's concerns, stating that the party nominates its strongest candidates for MLA seats and provides funds once the candidate launches a serious campaign on the ground.

 

Ajoy responded to Sucharita Mohanty's claims, highlighting discrepancies between her initial commitment to fight the election seriously and her subsequent allegations of insufficient funding. He noted that while Mohanty had expressed readiness to contest, she now alleges a lack of financial support from the party.

 

Kumar also revealed that the Congress has decided to replace Mohanty as the candidate for the Puri Lok Sabha seat, with a proposal already submitted to the party's high command.