New Delhi: The Congress Tuesday expelled its three MLAs in Odisha—Sofia Firdous, Ramesh Jena, and Dasarath Gamango—for supporting the Rajya Sabha candidature of Dilip Ray, backed by the BJP, within the elections to the Higher Home held Monday.

Whereas the expulsion of MLAs for defying whip throughout Rajya Sabha polls isn’t unusual, what has stood out on this case is the Congress labelling the legislators as “traitors”. Ray, a distinguished businessman in Odisha with previous ties with the BJD in addition to the BJP, contested as an impartial with tse BJP’s endorsement.

On social media, the OPCC made a collection of posts concentrating on the three MLAs who cross-voted. 

One publish on X mentioned, “Opponents battle you from the skin; traitors weaken you from the within. #Traitors of #Congress are #Traitors of #Nation”, whereas one other went, “They crossed the road for energy’s throne, However the folks will mark the traitors recognized.”

Opponents battle you from the skin; traitors weaken you from the within.#Traitors of #Congress are #Traitors of #Nation pic.twitter.com/vcjv5z7S1H

— Odisha Congress (@INCOdisha) March 16, 2026

OPCC president Bhakta Charan Das had warned Monday that the Congress would transfer to get the three MLAs disqualified below the tenth Schedule of the Structure that outlines the provisions on disqualification on the bottom of defection.

Earlier, the Congress had issued show-cause notices to the three MLAs after they made it evident, by way of their public statements criticising the social gathering’s resolution to affix fingers with the BJD, that they had been going to cross-vote. Gamango even responded to the discover, asserting that social gathering whips aren’t relevant throughout Rajya Sabha polls.

The choice of Firdous, the primary Muslim girl MLA in Odisha who was as soon as seen as a rising star of the Congress in state politics owing to her oratory and articulation expertise, was additionally a foregone conclusion as her father—former MLA Mohammed Moquim—was expelled by the social gathering in December final yr, 

The expulsion of Moquim, the founder and managing director of the Metro Group, a distinguished actual property participant in Odisha, had come inside per week of him writing a letter to the Congress excessive command, flagging “incorrect selections and misguided management decisions”, and batting for a extra central position for Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

Of the 4 Rajya Sabha seats from Odisha that had been up for grabs on this spherical of elections, the BJP comfortably gained two and the BJD one. Ray gained the remaining one, dealing a blow to the BJD and Congress, which had collectively backed Datteswar Hota as their nominee.

Aside from three Congress MLAs, as many as eight BJD MLAs additionally cross-voted, regardless of social gathering supremo Naveen Patnaik’s repeated appeals towards any such transfer. Even in 2002, Ray, who served as a union minister in cupboards led by HD Devegowda, IK Gujral and Atal Bihari Vajpayee, had gained a Rajya Sabha nomination as an indepedent with the backing of BJD MLAs cross-voting for him.

He had then contested as an impartial candidate after being suspended from the BJD, a celebration he had helped discovered alongside Biju Patnaik. Ray’s repeat of his 2002 feat has additionally dampened what was the primary occasion in 26 years of the BJD and Congress, longtime rivals in Odisha politics, coming collectively for a typical trigger.  

(Edited by Shashank Kishan)

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