BHUBANESWAR: The core committee of the state unit of the BJP met here on Sunday to select possible candidates for the biennial Rajya Sabha election to be held on March 16.
The meeting assumed significance as Union Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan attended the deliberations after staying away from previous core committee meetings.
Though the party did not issue any formal communication after the meeting, sources familiar with the discussions said the focus was largely on identifying probable candidates for the Rajya Sabha election. The terms of four members of the Upper House from Odisha - Mamata Mohanta, Muzibulla Khan, Sujeet Kumar and Niranjan Bishi are set to end on April 2, 2026.
Party sources said the core committee has shortlisted a panel of names, from which four candidates will be finalised by the BJP’s central parliamentary board. The exercise is being seen as crucial for balancing regional representation, organisational loyalty and caste and community equations within the party.
The meeting also discussed long-pending appointments of party leaders to various boards and state-owned corporations. With the BJP now in power in Odisha, several organisational leaders are reportedly expecting positions in government bodies and public-sector undertakings. The leadership is understood to have reviewed the status of these appointments and deliberated on an early resolution.
Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, deputy chief ministers KV Singh Deo and Pravati Parida and Union minister Jual Oram were present, along with other members of the committee. However, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and BJP national vice-president Baijayant Panda could not make it to the meeting.