Bhubaneshwar, June 5 -- BJP leader Debashish Samantaray filed his nomination papers for the Rajya Sabha by-election at the Odisha Assembly premises in Bhubaneswar on Friday.

He was accompanied by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi, Odisha BJP President Manmohan Samal, and other senior party leaders, underscoring the BJP's unified support for his candidature.

Reflecting on his departure from the BJD, Samantaray asserted that Odia sentiments were hurt during the 2024 elections, claiming that the emergence of a person from South India as Naveen Babu's successor pushed the party significantly backward and ultimately caused its defeat.

"First of all, I would like to thank Prime Minister Narendra Modi, our National President Nitin Nabin, Odis...