MUMBAI: Navsari Chandrakant Raghunath Patil originally belongs to Jalgaon in Maharashtra. His father had migrated to Gujarat in search of work.
The family is now settled in Surat and visits Jalgaon only for family functions. Patil has relatives in Jalgaon and Dhule districts of Maharashtra. Patil started his career as an industrial worker. He later joined the police and after 15 years of service, he resigned to join active politics.
In 1989, he was appointed chairman of Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation. He was elected to the Lok Sabha for the first time in 2009.
In the 2017 state polls, the BJP won 14 seats out of total 18 in Surat-Navsari region, where Marathi votes have a dominating presence.
Patil has a clear control over Surat and Navsari municipal corporations and has significant influence on migrant Marathi voters in Gujarat.
Patil expected to be inducted in the cabinet but missed the bus. However, BJP’s central leadership has shown immense faith in him by appointing him as the party chief in the home state of Modi and Shah despite his being a non-Gujarati.