Cuttack: BJD corporator Anita Behera was elected unopposed on Thursday, as the Mayor of Cuttack Municipal Corporation (CMC), official sources said.
The election of Behera, a corporator from Ward no 21, was guaranteed from the beginning as no other candidate filed nomination for today's poll. Notably, the ruling party won 36 seats out of 59 wards in CMC.
Earlier in the day, Rural Development Minister Bikram Keshari Arukh announced the party's decision to nominate Behera as its candidate for the CMC mayor poll.
"Party supremo Naveen Patnaik consulted the MLAs of the district yesterday and decided that Behera will be the party's candidate for the Mayor poll," the minister had said.
Similarly, BJD councillor Babita Das was elected uncontested as Chairman of the Baripada Municipality. Her election was a mere formality as no other party’s candidate filed papers for the poll of the Chairman post, which was reserved for a woman candidate.
In the municipality the BJD has won 21 seats out of 28 wards in the recently concluded polls.