AAP's Gopal Italia wins Gujarat's Visavadar bypoll in 2025, defeats BJP’s Kirit Patel — know who he is

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) candidate Gopal Italia has won from the Visavadar constituency of Gujarat in the bypoll 2025 in a tough contest with flying colours by maintaining a decent lead throughout the counting. He secured a total of 75,942 votes and defeated the BJP candidate Kirit Patel by a margin of 17,554 votes.

The bypoll was needed following the resignation of AAP MLA Bhupendra Bhayani in December 2023, as he joined the BJP, which resulted in reducing AAP’s Gujarat assembly seats to four (Dediapada, Jamjodhpur, Botad, Gariadhar), as per the HT report.

Who is Gopal Italia?

Italia was born on July 21, 1989, in the Botad district of Gujarat. He began his career as a police officer before emerging as a vocal social activist. He garnered his first public attention in 2017 after he complained to then Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel about alcohol prohibition violations when he was working as a government employee. Following the development, the clip of the phone call went viral, earning him widespread recognition for his bold anti-corruption role, according to a report in Financial Express.

Before entering politics, Gopal Italia was involved in the Patidar reservation movement and was affiliated with the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS). In 2018, he launched 'Kayda Katha' public events aimed at spreading legal awareness. After joining the AAP in June 2020, he was appointed state vice president and later became the Gujarat unit president by December of the same year.

Italia has led numerous public demonstrations addressing social and governance-related issues. In 2021, he notably led protests demanding transparency over the cancellation of the Gujarat head clerk exam following a paper leak. Recognised for his connection with grassroots communities and straightforward public statements, he remains a significant figure among the youth and farming communities.

Visavadar, once a BJP bastion led by former chief minister Keshubhai Patel, flipped to AAP in 2022, making the current contest crucial for the party to maintain influence. The constituency has 2,61,052 registered voters (1,35,597 men, 1,25,451 women, and four third-gender), where the total voter turnout in by polls is 56.57 per cent.

Ahead of the by-election results, the BJP held 161 seats in the 182-member Gujarat Assembly, Congress had 12 (after defections and Geniben Thakor’s Lok Sabha win), AAP held four, Samajwadi Party one, and there were two Independents.