NEW DELHI: Having attributed caste mobilisation for its seat count falling in Gujarat, the Vijay Rupani Cabinet, which was sworn in on Tuesday, sought to address the social conundrum by giving the lion’s share in the state council of ministers to Patidars and OBCs.
The BJP sought to make the swearing-in event grand, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi and chief ministers and their deputies from NDA-ruled states descended on Gandhinagar.
Gujarat Governor O P Kohli administered the oath of office to Rupani and his ministerial colleagues. Patidars and OBCs found equal representation – six each – in the 20-member council of ministers sworn in.
The Rupani Cabinet has three tribals, one Dalit and two Kshatriyas as ministers. With Nitin Patel as the deputy chief minister of the state, the BJP has attempted to send out a strong message to the Patidar community, which had been rallying behind Hardik Patel in the run-up to the Assembly elections.
The BJP was hit hard by the Patidar agitation in the just-concluded elections, as the party’s strength in the Saurashtra region slipped from 34 in 2012 to 19. Alpesh Thakor, the OBC leader, along with Hardik Patel had sought to challenge the BJP’s political dominance in the state. The BJP could win only 99 seats in the Assembly polls in contrast to 115 in 2012 out of a total of 182 constituencies.
Former chief ministers Keshubhai Patel and Shankarsinh Vaghela, who have left the BJP, were in attendance. Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar too attended, along with his deputy Sushil Kumar Modi.
Rupani has dropped a couple of ministers, including Babu Bokhiria and Vallabh Kakadia, from his earlier council of ministers.
He has inducted a few new faces, including R C Faldu and Kishore Kanani, both from the Patidar community. Influential BJP leader Saurabh Patel, who had earlier been dropped as minister, staged a comeback in the new ministry. Bhupendrasinh Chudasama, Jayesh Radadia, Pradipsinh Jadeja, and Purshottam Solanki are among the old faces who found berths in the Cabinet. Vibhavariben Dave, elected from Bhavnagar East, was the lone woman to take oath as minister.
While eight ministers have got Cabinet ranks, 10 are ministers of state. The BJP veteran and Lok Sabha MP from Gandhinagar, L K Advani was also present at the oath-taking ceremony.
Sena skips ceremony
THE Shiv Sena was conspicuous by its absence during the swearing-in of Vijay Rupani as Gujarat Chief Minister. When asked about it, Shiv Sena spokesperson Harshal Pradhan said that there was no reason for the party to attend the ceremony as it had contested the Assembly elections against the BJP. However, Pradhan made it clear that the Shiv Sena was still a part of the NDA and was very much a part of the government.