CHANDIGARH: Former Chief Minister of Gujarat and Punjab Affairs-in-charge of BJP Vijay Rupani, who was among the 241 passengers killed in the tragic Air India crash in Ahmedabad on Thursday afternoon, has been involved in Punjab politics for the last three years.
In fact, he re-scheduled his visit to London from June 5 to June 12 due to the Ludhiana (West) by-elections. The constituency goes to polling on June 19, and the result will be announced on June 23.
Rupani was specifically brought by the saffron party to take charge of the state in September 2022 after the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) ended its alliance with the BJP.
During this time, BJP's electoral performance improved. The party's vote share rose to 18.56 per cent from 6.6 percent in last year’s parliamentary elections. Under his leadership, the party had been taking on the AAP-led Punjab Government over many issues, including the law and order and the drug menace.
State BJP leadership described him as an ``acceptable, humble and down-to-earth human being” who deeply connected with the people across all levels of the state administration.
He had planned to travel to London on June 5 to meet his daughter but his travel plans were delayed due to the Ludhiana (west) by-election. His wife, Anjali Rupani, had already left for London on June 5.
The state party leaders recalled that Rupani was campaigning for the upcoming Ludhiana West assembly bypoll for weeks and had been diligently carrying out his responsibilities, including attending the filing of nomination papers by the party candidate Jiwan Gupta on June 2 from Ludhiana (West). On June 9, he had exuded confidence that Gupta would win the bypoll with a huge margin.
Known as a protégé of Amit Shah, Rupani was a first-time MLA from Rajkot (West) when he became the Chief Minister of Gujarat.
Expressing profound sorrow over the passing of Rupani, Punjab BJP president Sunil Jakhar said, "He was a humble and compassionate human being and a grassroots leader. I had the fortune of being associated with him while he was in-charge of the Punjab BJP. He was a real ‘gentleman politician’. Not only Gujarat has lost a great leader in him, but it is a personal loss for me, as I found his gentle and soft demeanour so endearing. His sagacity and simplicity in public life will be missed.”
Punjab BJP spokesman Pritpal Singh Baliawal who was the last party leader to see him off at Ludhiana said that he was a leader of the masses and he used to connect with people one to one to get feedback from the ground.
A sombre mood has enveloped the party unit as politicians from across the spectrum expressed their condolences. Among those who offered their sympathies included AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal, former Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal and Leader of the Opposition and senior congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa.