Mahakalpada BJD MlA and former Minister Atanu Sabyasachi Nayak has landed in a fresh controversy as he has been caught in camera seeking votes for a sarpanch candidate fielded by him violating law.
As per the law, elections only for Zilla Parishad members are held under political party affiliations while elections for sarpanches, ward members and Samiti members are held under non-party symbols without any party support and affiliation.
But Nayak was seen in the video asking people to vote for a candidate he has fielded for the sarpanch post.
Reacting to the violation, State Election Commission (SEC) Secretary Rabindranath Sahu said it is illegal on the part of a party MlA to ask voters to favour a sarpanch candidate.
He said district-level election officials have been instructed to take action if such things are happening.