PATNA, July 7 -- The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Tuesday named Abhishek Kumar, a youth leader and first-time electoral candidate, as its nominee for the July 30 Bankipur assembly by-election.

The party's central election committee approved his candidature, BJP national general secretary Arun Singh said in a statement issued from the party's central office in New Delhi.

Considered a close associate of BJP national president Nitin Nabin, whose election to the Rajya Sabha in April necessitated the by-poll, Kumar currently serves as vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM). He has previously been president of the BJYM Patna Mahanagar unit and has twice served as a 'mandal president'. He has also held organisational resp...