Following her victory from the Barabati-Cuttack Assembly seat, Congress candidate Sofia Firdous has become the first Muslim woman MLA in Odisha. She defeated BJP candidate Purna Chandra Mahapatra by a margin of 8,001 votes. Firdous replaced her father and sitting MLA Mohammed Moquim from the seat. Notably, the BJP won 78 seats in the 147-member Assembly.