Madhya Pradesh Assembly Elections: Former Madhya Pradesh home minister and senior BJP leader Umashankar Gupta, who was denied a ticket in the assembly election, suffered a heart attack and was admitted to a hospital. The 71-year-old leader was denied a ticket by the BJP when the party released its fifth list of candidates on October 21.
Umashankar Gupta is stable
As per the reports, the veteran BJP leader, who suffered a heart attack on Monday, is stable now. “Gupta is under observation in the ICU after placement of a stent. He is better now,” Gupta’s nephew Ashish Agrawal told news agency PTI from the hospital where the ex-minister is undergoing treatment.
He said Gupta experienced severe chest pain during a 'Kanya Bhoj' program organized by the BJP in a civic ward around 2:30 pm. A staff member at the private hospital where Gupta is admitted said he was taken to the facility at 3 pm. She said three doctors are monitoring Gupta’s health.
Gupta was denied ticket from Bhopal South-West Assembly constituency
Earlier on Sunday, Gupta's supporters had held a protest in front of Madhya Pradesh BJP President VD Sharma. Gupta was denied a ticket from the Bhopal South-West Assembly constituency in the party's fifth list released on October 21. During the protest, they demanded that the party's official nominee, Bhagwan Das Sabnani, be replaced.
Gupta was defeated by his nearest Congress rival from the South-West assembly segment in the 2018 assembly elections.
Madhya Pradesh Assembly elections
The election to the 230-member assembly in Madhya Pradesh is scheduled to be held on November 17, while the counting of votes will take place on December 3.
In the 2018 assembly polls, the Congress had won 114 seats, while the BJP got 109. However, the Congress government fell after many MLAs under the leadership of Jyotiraditya Scindia, who later became a Union minister, joined the BJP. The BJP returned to power in March 2020 with Shivraj Singh Chouhan as chief minister for a fresh term. The BJP's current strength in the assembly is 127.
Also Read: Madhya Pradesh Election: Nitish Kumar's JDU announces list of five candidates
