India, May 27 -- Two years ago, he was an aspirant for MLA ticket from Soro Assembly segment in Odisha's Balasore district. However, destiny had something else in store for Shibani Shankar Ray.

Ray, the only child of Late Kanhei Charan Rout and Ranjita Nayak, secured 138 rank in the Odisha Civil Services (OCS) Examination-2024, the results of which were declared by the Odisha Public Service Commission (OPSC) yesterday.

The 31-year-old was eager to begin his career in politics and was an aspirant for Biju Janata Dal (BJD) ticket to fight the 2024 Assembly polls in Odisha from Soro constituency.

However, Ray was denied the BJD ticket despite his strong grassroot connection.

The youth leader, who has an MBA degree from Indian Institute ...