Bhubaneswar, March 5: While the calculus on the Rajya Sabha Elections in Odisha has been an inconsistent system for the observers, Dillip Ray, one among the candidates in the fray vowed of winning the race with ease.
Interacting with media, following submission of his nomination before the Returning officer on Thursday, Ray said that he would conquer the Rajya Sabha Poll as easily as he had won the race in 2002.
Undelining the stupendous support of the ruling BJP, Ray said that he has always been getting blessings from Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He has already discussed with Amit Shah and the Party’s national leaderships regarding his candidature for the ensuing Rajya Sabha Elections.
“They all encourged me in this connection and asserted me to extend all sorts of co-operation in the venture. Meanwhile, I was encouraged by Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and state BJP chief Manmohan Samal, while I expressed my willingness to depict my candidature as an independent player, a short while ago”, former Union Minster & MP said.
Today, I filed my nomination for the Rajya Sabha elections as an Independent candidate with the support of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
— Dilip ray (@DilipRayOdisha) March 5, 2026
On this occasion, I was accompanied by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Odisha Shri Mohan Charan Majhi (@MohanMOdisha), Deputy Chief Ministers Shri… pic.twitter.com/DaaygnXR42
“I am also hopeful that, I will garner the heartfelt support from other parties, including the oppositions BJD and Congress, for my personal relationship and rapport with some members.”, Ray added.
Worth mentioning, Ray on March 27, 2002 had clinched phenomenal victory in the Rajya Sabha Election, with beating all odds he came across then. Ray won amid large-scale cross-voting by legislators of the BJD and its ally, the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Ray, who was Industry Minister in Biju Patnaik's Cabinet, managed to get the votes of 14 BJD and eight BJP legislators. Besides, he bagged the votes of two MLAs of the Congress(I), one of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and one independent.
