Gujarat bypoll: BJP nominates Harshad Parmar, son of late MLA for Umreth seat

Anand, March 30 (IANS) Preparations for the Umreth Assembly by-election in Gujarat have gathered pace, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announcing Harshad Parmar as its candidate for the vacant seat and stepping up organisational arrangements ahead of polling.

The bypoll was necessitated following the death of sitting BJP MLA Govind Parmar on March 6 after an illness, leaving the constituency vacant.

He had represented the seat since 2017 and was re-elected in 2022. Harshad Parmar, his son, has now been given the party ticket.

Party sources indicated that the decision factors in “the popularity of the family and the strong connections established by former MLA Govind Parmar” in the constituency.

The Election Commission has announced that polling for the by-election will be held on April 23, with counting scheduled for May 4.

The constituency has more than 2.4 lakh registered voters, and over 300 polling stations are expected to be set up, with administrative preparations already underway.

As part of its campaign preparations, the BJP has appointed former state Minister Pradipsinh Jadeja as the in-charge for the Umreth bypoll, while former Anand District Panchayat president Hasmukh Patel has been named co-in-charge.

The appointments were made to strengthen coordination and oversee campaign activities on the ground.

The Umreth Assembly constituency, located in Anand district, is one of the 182 seats in the Gujarat Legislative Assembly and forms part of the Anand Lok Sabha constituency.

It is an unreserved seat comprising areas of Umreth taluka and parts of Anand taluka.

According to local electoral assessments, the Thakor-Kshatriya community constitutes around 54 per cent of the electorate in the constituency, making it a decisive voting bloc in the by-election.

While the BJP has announced its candidate and put its campaign structure in place, the Congress has yet to declare its nominee, though it has initiated internal consultations and candidate selection efforts.

--IANS

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