AHMEDABAD: BJP MP from Rajkot Purushottam Rupala, who became embroiled in controversy during the Lok Sabha poll campaign due to a remark that angered the Kshatriya community, has been dropped from the Union Cabinet.
A three-term Rajya Sabha member, Rupala served as a minister in both of Modi's previous governments. From 2016 to 2021, he was the Union Minister of State for Agriculture, Farmers Welfare, and Panchayati Raj, and from July 2021, he was the Union Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry, and Dairying.
The number of Gujarat MPs in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's third government has decreased to six, down from seven in the second term.
According to sources, the Kshatriya movement against Rupala in Gujarat during the Lok Sabha elections also angered Kshatriyas in Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh, which may have cost the party in some seats.
"Votes of the Patidar community are decisive in Gujarat, and Patidar votes are crucial in more than 10 of Gujarat's 26 seats. Perhaps that's why the BJP did not replace Rupala at election time. Some BJP leaders were of the view that Patidar votes would be lost if the BJP replaced Rupala," said a leader on condition of anonymity.
Not only has Rupala been dropped, but another minister from Gujarat in the previous NDA government -- Union Minister of State for Telecom Devu Singh Chauhan -- has also been excluded from Modi 3.0.
However, sources claim Chauhan is likely to be given a more prominent position within the Gujarat BJP organisation. Belonging to the OBC Kshatriya community, this could address the community's resentment against the Gujarat BJP. It has been suggested that if Devu Singh is made the president of the Gujarat BJP, this could stabilize the party's dynamics in the state.