Debashish Samantaray quits BJD and Rajya Sabha membership, set to join BJP

The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MP Debashish Samantaray on Monday (May 25, 2026) quit the party and also resigned from the Rajya Sabha, alleging that he was being “systematically belittled” in the organisation.

Hours after resigning from the party, Mr. Samantaray said he met Rajya Sabha chairman CP Radhakrishnan in Parliament and submitted his resignation from the Upper House. A long-time associate of BJD chief Naveen Patnaik, Mr. Samantaray said he would soon join the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and that talks with the saffron party leadership had been finalised.

Sources said Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi and State BJP president Manmohan Samal are in New Delhi, and Mr. Samantaray may join the BJP in their presence either later on Monday (May 25, 2026) or the following day.

Mr. Samantaray alleged that despite being a close associate of Patnaik for years, he was prevented from meeting the BJD chief and blamed former bureaucrat-turned-politician V.K. Pandian for the party’s defeat in the 2024 elections. “There is no point in remaining in BJD when I am unable to meet my party president,” he told reporters.

In his resignation letter to Mr. Patnaik, Mr. Samantaray said, “I do hereby resign from the primary membership of BJD. Of late, I felt I have been systematically belittled in the party and that it does not require my services. Therefore, I have taken this hard decision in public interest and request you to accept my resignation.” Mr. Samantaray’s resignation comes months after two other Rajya Sabha MPs — Sujeet Kumar and Mamata Mahanta — quit the party. Ms. Mahanta and Mr. Kumar were later elected to the Rajya Sabha on BJP tickets.

A two-time MLA elected in 2009 and 2014, Mr. Samantaray expressed gratitude to Mr. Patnaik for nominating him to the Upper House of Parliament. “I shall always be indebted to you for nominating me to Rajya Sabha. I take this opportunity to express my sincere and deepest gratitude to you for giving me the opportunity to serve the people of undivided Cuttack district and to raise issues concerning Odisha at the national level,” he said in the letter.

Mr. Samantaray, who was elected to the Rajya Sabha in April 2024, had been a known critic of Mr. Pandian, who withdrew from active politics after the BJD’s defeat in the 2024 Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly elections. He had repeatedly alleged that despite announcing his “sanyas” from active politics, Mr. Pandian continued to influence the functioning of the regional party from behind the scenes.

Earlier, Mr. Samantaray had resigned from the post of Vice-President of the BJD senior citizens’ cell in November 2025. At that time, he had voiced dissatisfaction with the party’s functioning. He also alleged that the BJD drifted away from the ideology and principles of former CM Biju Patnaik.

“Though Naveen Babu, during election campaigns, had clarified that Pandian was not his political heir, he (Patnaik) has handed over Biju Patnaik’s house in Delhi to a trust headed by Pandian. How can the Biju legacy be protected by Pandian and some other lesser-known Odia,” Mr. Samantaray asked.

Meanwhile, rejecting suggestions that Mr. Samantaray’s resignation was a setback to the party, the BJD claimed his exit would instead strengthen the organisation in Cuttack. “He left the party to protect his business interests. He was in politics to do business and not to serve the people,” Opposition Chief Whip Pramila Mallik said.

Stating that Mr. Patnaik had made Mr. Samantaray an MP and twice an MLA besides assigning him party responsibilities, Ms. Mallik said, “The BJP may make him Prime Minister or President of India. He left the party when it is in opposition after taking all the benefits from the BJD when it was in power.”

Rejecting Ms. Mallik’s allegation, Mr. Samantaray said, “I do not want to go too low to exchange words with her (Mallik) and other such leaders presently working to oust more and more old leaders from the party.” With Mr. Samantaray’s resignation, the BJD’s strength in the Rajya Sabha will come down to five MPs.