A day after the Delhi High Court stayed the conviction of former union minister Dilip Ray in the 1999 coal scam case, senior BJP leader and party’s Sundargarh Lok Sabha candidate, Jual Oram on Tuesday informed that Ray will be the party candidate from the Rourkela seat.
“It has been finalised that Dilip Ray will be nominated for the Rourkela Assembly seat. His name for the Rourkela ticket will be announced in a day or two. Once his name is declared, we will make all the preparations,” said Oram.
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Ray is a known face in Rourkela. In 1985, he was elected as the chairman of Rourkela Municipality and in the same year, he was elected from the Rourkela Assembly constituency to the Odisha Legislative Assembly. Subsequently, he was elected from the same seat in 1990 and 2014.
If Ray is fielded, the Rourkela Assembly seat is likely to witness a high-octane fight as BJD has nominated Ray’s arch-rival, Sarada Nayak.