After the unceremonious exit of Anandiben Patel as the chief minister of Gujarat, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced its state president Vijay Rupani as her successor.
After days of speculation, Rupani was announced as the new CM after a state legislature party meet in Ahmedabad on Friday. Union roads and transport minister Nitin Gadkari, appointed by BJP’s central parliamentary board to supervise the selection of Patel’s successor, announced Rupani as the new CM. The outgoing CM was also present at the meet. Nitin Patel, currently serving as health minister, will be elevated as deputy CM in the new government.
BJP chief Amit Shah, who reached Ahmedabad on Thursday, held deliberations with senior ministers and party leaders including state BJP in-charge Dinesh Sharma, national joint general secretary (organisation) V Satish, party treasurer Surendra Patel, education minister Bhupendrasinh Chudasama and former state BJP chief RC Faldu, ahead of the announcement.
Anandiben Patel had submitted her resignation to Governor OP Kohli on Wednesday, after announcing her desire to hand over the reins to the “younger generation” on social media a couple of days earlier.
Rupani, who started his career as an activist of BJP’s student wing Akhil Bhartiya Vidharthi Parishad, has served the BJP since the party’s inception and was even jailed during the Emergency. A corporator and subsequently mayor of Rajkot, Rupani served as minister for transport, water supply, labour and employment in the Anandiben government. Rupani enjoys the support of PM Narendra Modi. When Modi was the CM, Rupani had served as the chairman of Gujarat Finance Board.
