Bhubaneswar: A delegation of the opposition Biju Janata Dal led by Deputy Leader of the BJD Legislature Party Prasanna Acharya Monday met Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Odisha R.S. Gopalan over the alleged illegal issuance of second ballot papers to two BJP legislators during the recently concluded Rajya Sabha (RS) elections.
In a memorandum submitted to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), the BJD alleged that second ballot papers were wrongly issued to Brahmagiri MLA Upasana Mohapatra and Khallikote MLA Purna Chandra Sethy after they had already marked their original ballot papers in the Rajya Sabha polls held earlier this year.
The regional party claimed that despite repeated objections from its polling and counting agents, election officials permitted the issuance of second ballot papers even though the circumstances did not fulfil the conditions prescribed under Rule 41 of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961, relating to “spoilt ballot papers”.
According to the BJD, the Election Commission observer had initially refused permission for the issuance of second ballot papers but later allowed them, raising serious concerns over the legality of the decision and adherence to statutory provisions.
“The continuous and multi-level objections by polling agents, election agents, authorised agents, counting agents, candidates, and parliamentary representatives establish beyond doubt that the issue was treated contemporaneously as a grave statutory illegality affecting the sanctity of the election itself,” the memorandum stated.
The issue was first raised publicly by BJD president and Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik during the voting process. Subsequently, Patnaik wrote to the Chief Election Commissioner on March 18, 2026, seeking intervention in the matter.
Later, on April 28, 2026, Rajya Sabha MP Sasmit Patra submitted a detailed representation before the Election Commission of India demanding urgent statutory action.
Following the representation, the Election Commission reportedly directed the Odisha CEO to hear the grievances of the BJD delegation.
In its memorandum, the BJD demanded that the votes cast by Upasana Mohapatra and Purna Chandra Sethy in favour of Rajya Sabha candidate Dilip Ray be rejected. The party argued that if the two votes are disallowed, candidate Datteswar Hota would secure more first-preference votes and should consequently be declared elected.
The party also sought disclosure of the action taken on its earlier complaints lodged on March 16 and March 18. Additionally, it urged the CEO to preserve and examine all records linked to the controversy, including cancelled ballot papers, observer reports, polling and counting records, CCTV footage, videography, photographs, and other official election materials.
The BJD further demanded an independent and transparent inquiry into the circumstances under which the second ballot papers were issued and sought a determination on whether Rule 41 of the Conduct of Election Rules, 1961 had been violated.
