Bhubaneswar, Nov. 11 -- Polling began on Tuesday morning for the Nuapada Assembly bypoll, marking the start of a closely watched electoral contest in western Odisha. Over 2.53 lakh voters are eligible to cast their votes across 358 polling booths in the constituency, which fell vacant following the death of four-time MLA Rajendra Dholakia on September 8, 2025.

Voting commenced at 7 AM and will continue till 5 PM in most booths. However, in 47 remote and Maoist-affected polling stations, voting will conclude an hour earlier, at 4 PM, to ensure the safe return of polling personnel before nightfall.

The by-election has evolved into a triangular fight between three prominent candidates: Jay Dholakia of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Sneh...