BJD Rajya Sabha MP Sasmit Patra resigns as Leader of the party in Upper House

Bhubaneswar,08/04/2026:Biju Janata Dal (BJD) Rajya Sabha MP Sasmit Patra has resigned as the Leader of the party in the Upper House. He submitted his resignation to BJD president Naveen Patnaik today. The move comes amid indications of internal discussions within the Biju Janata Dal regarding leadership in Parliament. Meanwhile, party sources indicate that consultations are underway to decide his successor in the Rajya Sabha.
There are currently 6 BJD MPs in the Rajya Sabha. Sasmit Patra, Debashish Samantray, Manas Mangaraj, Sulata Deo, Subhasish Khuntia and Santrapta Mishra. Sasmit has been the parliamentary party leader of BJD since 2022. The incident of MPs writing a letter to the President to remove Sasmit on the day Santrapta took oath in the Rajya Sabha has become a matter of much discussion. It is a mystery under what circumstances the MPs suddenly turned against Sasmit. But Sasmit or other MPs are not giving any reaction in this regard.