Former Nagaon DC Debashish Sharma Gets BJP Ticket for October 6 Nagaon Lok Sabha Bypoll
The former Nagaon District Commissioner, who took voluntary retirement on September 3 and joined the BJP on September 8, has been named the party’s candidate for the October 6 by-election.
GUWAHATI- The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has formally named former IAS officer Debashish Sharma as its candidate for the upcoming Nagaon Lok Sabha by-election, ending days of speculation over his entry into electoral politics following his recent retirement from the bureaucracy.
Sharma, a 1992-batch Assam-Meghalaya cadre officer, took voluntary retirement on September 3 while serving as the Nagaon District Commissioner. He joined the BJP on September 8 at the party’s Assam headquarters in Guwahati. Three days later, the BJP’s Central Election Committee approved his candidature for the 09-Nagaon parliamentary constituency. The formal announcement was issued from the party’s national headquarters in New Delhi and signed by national in-charge Tarun Chugh.
The by-election is scheduled for October 6, 2026, with counting of votes set for October 9. The seat fell vacant after two-time Congress MP Pradyut Bordoloi, who won the constituency in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, switched to the BJP ahead of the Assam Assembly polls earlier this year and subsequently won from the Dispur constituency.
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Sharma Projects Long Association with Nagaon
Reacting to his nomination, Sharma expressed gratitude to the BJP leadership and the people of Nagaon. He specifically thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP national president Nitin Nabin, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, state BJP president Dilip Saikia and the MLAs of Nagaon for their support and guidance.
Sharma said his relationship with the people of the constituency predates the election and expressed confidence that it would translate into electoral support.
He said he would approach voters not merely as a candidate but “as a member of their family”, while asserting that the electorate was primarily looking for development.
Sharma also said he expected voters to make a conscious choice in the by-election rather than vote on emotions, expressing confidence that this would favour the BJP.
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Unemployment to Be a Key Campaign Issue
The BJP candidate identified unemployment as one of the major challenges facing the constituency and said the issue would receive particular attention during his campaign.
Sharma said young people were increasingly becoming self-reliant rather than depending solely on government employment and described them as central to the country’s future.
While acknowledging the continuing importance of infrastructure such as roads and schools, he said greater emphasis should be placed on enabling young people to take up leadership and nation-building roles.
He also referred to Nagaon’s sizeable minority population, saying members of the community were seeking opportunities and had expressed expectations from the BJP-led governments at the Centre and in Assam.
Sharma said the constituency had several issues and grievances and pledged to work towards addressing them, while expressing confidence that his earlier rapport across communities would help his campaign.
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Congress Questions Sharma’s Transition from Bureaucracy
Sharma’s rapid transition from District Commissioner to BJP candidate has drawn criticism from the Congress.
Dhubri MP Rakibul Hussain has filed a complaint with the Assam Chief Electoral Officer, seeking a review of decisions taken during Sharma’s tenure as District Commissioner and District Election Officer. Hussain has alleged irregularities and questioned Sharma’s neutrality.
Assam Congress president and Jorhat MP Gaurav Gogoi also criticised the development, describing it as “nothing short of fraud” and arguing that Sharma should not have continued in the District Election Officer role if he had already decided to enter electoral politics.
These are political allegations raised by the Congress and have not been established as facts.
The BJP has defended Sharma’s nomination, maintaining that there was nothing improper about a bureaucrat joining the party after the government accepted his voluntary retirement.
From Bureaucracy to Electoral Politics
During his administrative career, Sharma held several key positions, including Special Officer to the then Assam Governor, Deputy Resident Commissioner at Assam Bhawan in Mumbai, Commissioner of Guwahati Municipal Corporation, and District Commissioner of Morigaon and Nagaon.
He is also the founding chairman and trustee of the cancer-care organisation Deepshikha.
BJP state president Dilip Saikia congratulated Sharma and expressed confidence that voters in Nagaon would support the party.
The Nagaon constituency, covering assembly segments from Nagaon and Morigaon districts and having a significant minority population, is expected to witness a multi-cornered contest. The Congress is yet to announce its candidate, while parties including TMC and AIUDF have shown interest in the contest.
With the nomination filing deadline set for September 16, Sharma’s candidature represents a significant transition from senior district administration to active electoral politics in the same constituency where he recently served as the top administrative official.
