NE NEWS SERVICE
AHMEDABAD, SEP 12
Fifty-nine-year-old MLA from Ghatlodia Bhupendra Patel was named the next Gujarat Chief Minister at a meeting of BJP legislators on Sunday, a day after the unexpected resignation of Vijay Rupani. Bhupendra Patel was a surprise decision by the party as he was not listed among the main contenders, according to BJP sources. Bhupendra Patel will take oath as the Chief Minister of Gujarat on Monday, state BJP president C R Paatil said.
આપની સ્નેહસભર શુભકામનાઓ બદલ અંત:કરણ પૂર્વક આભાર…! https://t.co/pUkaw4IVUr
— Bhupendra Patel (Modi Ka Parivar) (@Bhupendrapbjp) September 12, 2021
He was unanimously elected as the BJP legislature party leader. Bhupendra Patel, a first-time MLA, is known as a soft-spoken worker of the party, who has made his way up in the state politics from the municipality level.
Patel, who will replace Vijay Rupani as the chief minister of Gujarat, had contested his maiden Assembly election from Ghatlodia constituency in Ahmedabad in 2017 and won it by a margin of over 1.17 lakh votes, which was a record during that election. He had declared more than ₹ 5 crore in assets in his 2017 election papers.
.@BJP4Gujarat વિધાયક દળના નેતા તરીકે ચૂંટાવા બદલ શ્રી @Bhupendrapbjp જીને હાર્દિક અભિનંદન અને શુભેચ્છાઓ.
મને વિશ્વાસ છે કે @narendramodi જીના માર્ગદર્શન અને નેતૃત્વ હેઠળ રાજ્યની નિરંતર વિકાસ યાત્રાને નવી ઉર્જા અને વેગ મળશે અને ગુજરાત સુશાસન અને જન કલ્યાણમાં અગ્રેસર રહેશે.
— Amit Shah (Modi Ka Parivar) (@AmitShah) September 12, 2021
Fondly called as ”Dada” by many, he is considered to be close to former Gujarat chief minister and now Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel. He represents the Assembly constituency that is part of the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha seat represented by Union minister Amit Shah.
In the past, Patel had served as the chairman of Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (AUDA) between 2015 and 2017. Before that, he was also the standing committee chairman of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC), the largest urban local body in Gujarat, between 2010 and 2015.
People close to him know Patel, who holds a diploma in civil engineering, as a smiling face, who is well-connected to the grass roots.
Before contesting the Assembly election, he was active in local politics and became a member of Memnagar Municipality in Ahmedabad district, serving as its president twice.
Patel is also a trustee of Sardardham Vishwa Patidar Kendra, an organisation to dedicated to the socio-economic development of the Patidar community. The BJP was reportedly keen to appease Patidars ahead of next year’s assembly elections.
આદરણીય શ્રી @Bhupendrapbjp ને ગુજરાતના મુખ્યમંત્રી તરીકે નિયુક્ત થવા બદલ ખૂબ ખૂબ અભિનંદન pic.twitter.com/oBsedCb713
— BJP Gujarat (@BJP4Gujarat) September 12, 2021
Patel to take oath tomorrow; Cabinet formation not now
Gujarat’s chief minister-designate Bhupendra Patel met Governor Acharya Devvrat on Sunday evening and staked claim to form the next government in the state after the sudden resignation of Vijay Rupani from the top post.
Patel was accompanied by the central and state leaders, including Rupani, observers sent by the central BJP, Union ministers Narendrasinh Tomar and Prahlad Joshi, state BJP in-charge Bhupendra Yadav, state BJP president C R Paatil, among others.
“He presented a letter to the governor to form the government, which was accepted by the governor,” a BJP office-bearer said.
Bhupendra Patel will take oath as the Chief Minister of Gujarat on Monday, state BJP president C R Paatil said.Talking to reporters on Sunday, Paatil said, “Bhupendra Patel will take oath as the chief minister…Only the chief minister will be sworn in tomorrow.”
He added the new cabinet will be formed after consultation with the senior leaders in a couple of days.
No discussion was held in the legislature party meeting about the deputy chief minister”s post, he said.
Patel, who was also present there, told reporters that he was grateful to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP chief J P Nadda, and Union minister Amit Shah for the trust they reposed in him.
He said he was also grateful to the trust reposed in him by the Gujarat leadership, including outgoing CM Vijay Rupani and Deputy CM Nitin Patel, C R Paatil and other leaders.
He said the blessing of former CM Anandiben Patel were with him all the time.
“The government has worked well so that development reaches the last person. We will plan anew and discuss with the organisation to take forward the development works,” he said.
