Gandhinagar: BJP leader Bhupendra Patel accepts congratulations on becoming the new Chief Minister of Gujarat.
BJP leader Bhupendra Patel will take oath as the 17th Chief Minister of Gujarat today. His swearing-in ceremony will take place today at 02:20 pm. Patel was chosen as the new face of Gujarat, two days after Vijay Rupani resigned from the top post in the state. The decision comes several months ahead of the assembly elections to be held in the state in December next year. Patel is believed to have a strong influence in the Patidar community in Gujarat, which has been groomed by the BJP party to win the upcoming elections.
With Vijay Rupani’s resignation as chief minister on Saturday, he became the fourth chief minister in the BJP-led state government in the country this year to opt for the move. Earlier, former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Tirath Singh Rawat and Trivendra Singh Rawat resigned.
Affectionately addressed as ‘Dada’ by his supporters, Bhupendrabhai Rajinikanthbhai Patel is known for his gentle personality and is considered the shelter of former Chief Minister Anandiben Patel.
The announcement of the 59-year-old BJP leader’s name as chief minister-elect at the BJP legislature party meeting on Sunday came as a surprise to many as the low-profile MLA was not seen among the top contenders. Post.
The BJP, however, said Patel’s selection was a unanimous decision by all the leaders present at the party’s legislative meeting.
Till Sunday morning, Patel was another MLA attending small party events in his constituency, where he was planting saplings and planning the next organizational programmes.
Born in Ahmedabad, Patel is a first-time MLA from Ghatlodia seat, a post previously held by Anandiben Patel, who is currently serving as the Governor of Uttar Pradesh with additional charge of Madhya Pradesh.
He won his first seat in 2017 by a margin of 117,000 votes, the biggest margin in that election, defeating Congress candidate Shashikant Patel. He secured more than 72 percent vote share in Ghatlodia constituency during the 2017 assembly elections.
However, Patel is not a new face in politics and has served as an Ahmedabad Municipal Councillor. Patel, who holds a Diploma in Civil Engineering, also served as the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and the Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (AUDA).
With the state assembly elections due in 2022, the BJP went with Patel, the Patidar face for chief minister. He is also a trustee of Patidar organizations Sardar Dham and Vishwa Umiya Foundation.
The Patidars are a dominant caste in Gujarat with a large control over the electoral vote. The community also dominates the political economy, with strongholds on the education, realty and cooperative sectors.
Patel’s name election is important for BJP as he is a Patidar as well as a Kadva Patel. He will be the first Chief Minister of Gujarat from the Kadva Patel community, which constitutes about 12.4 per cent of the state’s population. Till now all other “Patel” chief ministers of Gujarat belonged to the Leuva Patel community.
Patel has been invited by Governor Acharya Devvrat to take oath as the Chief Minister on Monday. BJP has said that the decision regarding the new cabinet of Gujarat will be taken later.
The party is counting on Patel to navigate the party through tough waters during the upcoming assembly elections in 2022. In the 2017 state election, the BJP won 99 out of the state’s 182 assembly seats, with the Congress getting 77 seats.
(with ANI inputs)
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