Kundariya second from Rajkot to find Union role

RAJKOT: Sixty four-year-old Mohan Kundariya is the second Lok Sabha member from Rajkot parliamentary constituency to become a Union minister.
Earlier, Vallabh Kathiria, a Leuva Patel, had found a place in Atal Behari Vajpayee's cabinet. Kundariya however comes from the Kadva Patel community. The Patel community has been economically and politically influential in Gujarat besides being loyal to BJP.
Kundariya had courted controversy just before the recent Lok Sabha polls when he walked on chests of Yoga students in Rajkot city. He had later apologized for his act.
The video circulated at that time showed a towering Kundariya holding a flag in one hand walking on the chests of around 10 children with support of two people. The students were from his hometown of Tankara in Morbi district and the event was held at Swaminarayan temple in Rajkot on March 23 to mark the martyrdom of Bhagat Singh. Born in Nichi Mandal village of then Morbi taluka of Rajkot district, Kundariya has served as president of Morbi Diamond Association and at various positions in Morbi Nagarpalika.
He represented Tankara-Padadhari assembly constituency in the state assembly on five occasions and was the minister of state for rural development in Keshubhai Patel led government. He was again inducted in the Narendra Modi-led BJP government in Gujarat as rural development minister in 2011. Kundariya owns ceramic industrial units in Morbi.