BJP leader Bhupendra Patel on Monday took oath as the Chief Minister of Gujarat for a second straight term in Gandhinagar in the presence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Patel took oath as the 18th CM before Governor Acharya Devvrat at a function held at the Helipad Ground near the new Secretariat. Sixteen other ministers, including eight of cabinet rank, were also sworn in. The new entrants include 11 former ministers.
Top BJP leaders, including Union ministers and chief ministers of the BJ-ruled states, were present at the swearing-in ceremony. Uttar Pradesh CM Yogi Adityanath, Maharashtra CM Eknath Shinde, Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar, Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, Goa CM Pramod Sawant, Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Arunachal Pradesh CM Pema Khandu and Haryana Deputy CM Dushyant Chautala among others.
Union Ministers Smriti Irani, Ramdas Athawale, and Sarbananda Sonowal also attended the ceremony.
A look at the new Gujarat government’s cabinet:
Bhupendra Patel: Patel took oath as the Chief Minister for the second time after he resigned along with his entire cabinet on Friday following the election results which gave BJP the most decisive win ever. Patel won the Ghatlodia seat with the highest margin of 1.92 lakh votes in the elections.
Kanu Bhai Desai: The former finance minister of Gujarat, Kanu Bhai Desai won the Pardi seat by with over 1.2 Lakh votes. Desai retained the seat he won in 2012, outperforming Congress’s Hemant Manubhai Desai by 37,311 votes.
Rushikesh Patel: The former Minister of Health and Family Welfare of Gujarat, Rushikesh Patel held the important health portfolio through the Covid pandemic. Patel won the Visnagar seat defeating Congress’s Kirit Patel from Visnagar constituency.
Raghavji Patel: The agriculture minister in the outgoing Bhupendra Patel government, Raghavji Patel retained his Jamnagar Rural seat in Jamnagar district defeating his main challenger from the Aam Aadmi Party by 47,500 votes.
Balvantsinh Rajput: Balwantsinh Rajput won the Sidhpur seat after defeating Chandanji Thakor of Congress, and Mahendra Rajput of Aam Aadmi Party. Rajput resigned from the Congress in July 2017 ahead of the Rajya Sabha election and went on to contest the polls on BJP ticket.
Bhanuben Babariya: Babariya is said to be in the race for a minister berth after she won Rajkot Rural for the third time. A sitting corporator in Rajkot Municipal Corporation, Babaria was elected from the SC seat in 2007 and 2012. She was then dropped and spent four years on sidelines. She was then given the ticket to contest RMC elections and she won, per Indian Express.
Kunwarji Bavalya: The former Minister Of Water Supply, Kunwarji Bavalya switched to BJP from Congress in 2018 and won the Jasdan Assembly constituency. Six-time MLA Bavaliya defeated his one-time prodigy Bholabhai Gohil.
Mulu Bera: Ayar Mulubhai Hardasbhai Bera won the Khambhalia constituency defeating Isudan Gadhvi of the Aam Aadmi Party
Kuber Dindor: Kuberbhai Mansukhbhai Dindor won the Santrampur constituency beating Gendalbhai Damor of Congress, and Parvat Vagodia Fauji of Aam Aadmi Party. He retained the Santrampur seat after winning it in 2017.
Ministers of State
Harsh Sanghvi: An MLA from Majura, Sanghavi held the all-important home portfolio as MoS in the outgoing Bhupendra Patel government. He was also given charge of the revenue portfolio after Rajendra Trivedi was stripped of it. Sanghavi has been winning from Majura since 2012.
Parsottam Solanki: five-time MLA Parsottam Solanki won the Bhavnagar Rural constituency in Saurashtra region. He is a prominent Koli community leader and has been winning the Koli community-dominated seat with comfortable margins.
Bachubhai Khabad: Khabad Bachubhai Maganbhai won the Devgadbariya constituency beating AAP’s Vakhala Bharatsinh Pratapbhai by a 44,000 plus vote share. He retained the seat he has been holding since 2012.
Jagdish Vishwakarma (Panchal): Minister of industries in the previous government, Panchal is considered to be close to Home Minister Amit Shah, per Indian Express. He was also given an additional roads and buildings portfolio when Purnesh Modi was relieved of it. He won the Nikol constituency of Ahmedabad city beating Congress’s Ranjitsinh Barad.
Mukesh Patel: Mukesh Patel won the key Mehsana constituencies against Bhagat Patel of Congress and PK Patel of the Aam Aadmi Party. The BJP has kept hold of the Mehsana seat for the most part since 1990.
Bhikhusinh Parmar: Arvalli Bhikhubhai Parmar won the Modasa constituency that was held by the Congress after he lost elections to the seat in 2017. Parmar defeated Rajendrasinh Thakor of the Congress who held the seat since 2012.
Praful Panseria: Panseria won the Kamrej seat and contested against prominent faces of the Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) who were instrumental in the Patidar agitation – Ram Dhaduk from AAP and Congress’ Nilesh Kumbhani. Panseria won the seat with a vote margin of 74,697.
Kunwarji Halpati: Two years after quitting the BJP in the run-up to the Assembly elections, former MLA from Mandvi, Kunwarji Halpati fought from the Mandvi seat and won. He previously won the same Mandvi Assembly seat in 2007 on a Congress ticket. HE had joined the BJP in 2012 after the Congress did not field him in the Assembly elections.
In the just-concluded Gujarat assembly elections, counting for which was held on December 8, the BJP won a seventh straight term by winning record 156 seats in the 182-member House. The Congress won 17 constituencies and AAP 5.
(with inputs from PTI)
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