The Gujarat State Election Commission (SEC) has confirmed that 751 out of 4,564 gram panchayats, initially slated for elections, have been declared &ldquo;Samras&rdquo; &mdash; a status granted to villages where the sarpanch and ward members are chosen unanimously, eliminating the need for a vote. These panchayats include those facing general elections, midterm polls, and newly created ones following administrative restructuring.
As per an official release issued on Friday, these 751 villages selected their leadership through consensus in alignment with the Samras scheme promoted by the state government. The initiative encourages community agreement in selecting local representatives and offers special benefits to panchayats adopting this method.
From the remaining 3,813 panchayats, no voting will occur in 271 due to either partial Samras outcomes &mdash; where only certain seats were filled unanimously &mdash; or a complete lack of candidate nominations. Consequently, elections will be conducted in 3,541 gram panchayats on June 22.
Simultaneously, by-elections were announced for 3,524 additional panchayats. However, only 353 of these will proceed to polling day, as 3,171 panchayats either reported unopposed results or saw no nominations submitted.
Overall, the upcoming elections will cover 3,656 sarpanch positions and 16,224 ward member posts across the state, including contests under general, midterm, divisional, and by-election categories. The SEC estimates that nearly 81 lakh voters will participate in the process.
A total of 10,479 polling booths have been arranged to accommodate the electorate. Of these, 3,939 have been designated as sensitive, with an additional 336 identified as highly sensitive. Voting will take place on June 22 from 7 am to 6 pm using traditional ballot boxes and paper ballots.
Enhanced police presence and patrolling are being deployed to all locations where polling is scheduled. Special security provisions are being enforced at booths marked as sensitive or highly sensitive, to ensure voters can exercise their rights without intimidation or disturbance.
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Voting to be held in 3,541 Gujarat panchayats as 751 villages choose leaders unanimously.

'Samras' Declared in 751 Gram Panchayats in Gujarat

Voting to be held in 3,541 Gujarat panchayats as 751 villages choose leaders unanimously.

June 21, 2025 | 18:09 IST