Pipili By-Poll in Odisha ; Congress Candidate Ajit Mangaraj Dies of Covid
Bureau,Odishabarta
Bhubaneswar:Congress nominee for the by-election in Pipili Assembly constituency, Ajit Mangaraj, died at a private hospital in Bhubaneswar on Wednesday, three days before the polling scheduled on April 17, family sources said. The by-election was countermanded due to the death of the candidate and a new date will be announced later, Chief Electoral Officer S K Lohani said.
Mangaraj, 53, was hospitalised after falling ill during campaigning in Pipili last week. He had announced on Saturday that he had tested positive for COVID-19. The Congress leader is survived by his wife and two sons.
Odisha Governor Ganeshi Lal, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and senior Congress leaders condoled his death.
“The by-poll in the Pipili Assembly segment has been countermanded. The Election Commission of India will decide on a new date for the polling. The Congress will be allowed to field its new candidate in place of Mangaraj,” Lohani said. The CEO said that other parties cannot change their candidates. Campaigning for the election, which was scheduled to end on Thursday, also came to a halt.
“The hon’ble Governor condoled the passing away of senior Congress leader and Pipili Assembly by-poll candidate Ajit Mangaraj and extended his condolences to his family members. Om Shanti,” a Raj Bhavan statement said.
Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said in a tweet:“I am sad to know about the demise of Congress candidate Ajit Mangaraj who was contesting the Pipili Assembly by-election. I extend my condolences to the bereaved family at such a sad time,”.
Union Petroleum Minister Pradhan visited the hospital and expressed his condolence over the death of Mangaraj. “He was infected with corona and passed away today. I pray to Lord to give peace to his soul and strength to his family members,” Pradhan said.
Senior Congress leader Pradeep Majhi said Mangaraj’s blood oxygen level dropped to below 30 per cent and he could not recover from it. “It is our fault to hold elections during the pandemic. The Congress candidate became a victim of the infection. There should be no election during the pandemic,” the former MP said.
Congress MLAs Taraprasad Bahinipati and Ramesh Jena said Mangaraj died due to respiratory problems. Former State Congress president Jaydev Jena also expressed grief over the untimely demise of Mangaraj.
The bypoll in the constituency was necessitated due to the death of senior BJD MLA Pradeep Maharathy in October last year. He too was detected COVID-19 positive but died after recovering from the disease.
According to the Representation of the People Act, 1951, if the candidate of a recognised national party or State party dies, the poll is countermanded, Returning Officer for Pipili by-poll, P K Sahoo, said. Sahoo, who is also the Additional District Magistrate of Puri, said polling party members, who were earlier instructed to reach Pipili for receiving EVMs and go to polling booths, were asked not to come till further orders. The police have also been informed not to deploy personnel in booths, he said.
#agencies
