Bhubaneswar, Sep 24 (IANS): The opposition Congress party Wednesday decided to field former party MLA Abhimanyu Behera for the Oct 15 parliamentary by-election for Odisha's Kandhamal seat.

Behera, 59, was MLA from Phulbani 1985-1990.

Since he is a local man and has influence in the constituency, the party decided to field him, a senior state Congress leader told IANS.

Behera's name was announced a day after the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD) decided to field Pratyusha Rajeswari, widow of late MP Hemendra Chandra Singh.

The seat is likely to see a triangular contest as the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has fielded former MP Rudra Madhav Ray.

Ray, 77, was a member of the state legislative assembly for three terms between 1990 and 2009 before being elected to the Lok Sabha on a BJD ticket in 2009.

The BJD, however, denied him a ticket in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and later suspended him for anti-party activities.

The by-poll in Kandhamal was necessitated following Hemendra Chandra Singh's death.

The Kandhamal Lok Sabha constituency comprising seven assembly segments is spread over four districts - Kandhamal, Boudh, Nayagarh and Ganjam.