Amid growing buzz of him replacing Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani who resigned on Saturday, Deputy CM Nitin Patel tried to put rumours to rest, saying the BJP high command would take the final call. Patel, who is also the finance, health, and medical education minister, also listed the qualities of a chief minister ahead of the BJP’s legislature party meeting at 3pm on Sunday where Rupani’s successor will be chosen.
“A chief minister should be someone who is popular, experienced and takes everyone together. There are rumours in the media that I will be made CM, but the fact is that BJP high command will decide who will be the chief minister,” Patel said in Ahmedabad.
He also dismissed rumours that Rupani was pressured to resign. “Rupani voluntarily resigned as CM. He didn’t take the decision under any pressure. The observers sent by party high command are taking the views of senior BJP leaders on who should be made the CM. The decision will be taken at the meeting today,” he added.
Patel has previously served as Minister of Water Supply, Water Resources (except Kalpsar Division), Urban Development, and Urban Housing. In 2012 and 2017, he was elected to the Gujarat Legislative Assembly from Mehsana.
Sources have told News18 that front-runners for the position include Nitin Patel, Gordhan Jadafia, Mansukh Mandaviya, C R Paatil, Parshottam Rupala, and RC Faldu.
This is the fourth Chief Minister that the BJP has dropped this year across three states, after the twin change of guard in Uttarakhand and BS Yediyurappa in Karnataka. Rupani had turned 65 last month and if sources are to be believed, the party was not so confident of facing the next elections in Gujarat under his leadership. Rupani in his resignation speech spoke of “Nayi Urja and Naya Utsaah” as the reason for choosing a new Chief Minister.
With the party being in power for nearly two decades now in Gujarat and Rupani not seen as the most dynamic face, the change of guard 15 months before the elections paves the way for the party to select a new leader to counter anti-incumbency. The same could reflect in the ticket distribution next year as well when a number of sitting MLAs could be dropped, sources say.
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