Delay in selection of party candidates and roadblocks in seat sharing negotiations with electoral partners have caused the Congress campaign to lag behind in Orissa.
With barely a day to go for closure of filing of nomination papers for the first phase elections in the state, the Congress is yet to finalise the list of its candidates to contest the Lok Sabha and assembly elections.
Eleven Lok Sabha and 77 assembly seats would be going to polls in the first phase elections.
The Congress, which has so far released the names of party candidates in 16 out of 21 parliamentary and 99 out of 147 assembly seats, is yet to announce the names of party nominees for the Berhampur and Kalahandi parliamentary constituencies and 14 assembly seats facing polls in the first phase.
''We are losing vital campaign time and the delay is hurting Congress prospects'', a concerned party leader said.
PCC spokesman Arya Kumar Gyanendra said the list of party nominees wes expected to be released today.
The BJD and BJP, main opponents of the Congress, who have an electoral alliance for the last six years, have already finalised their list of candidates for the simultaneous polls, and have swung into electioneering.