Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani on Saturday resigned from the top post after being in power for five years. Rupani’s resignation as chief minister comes 15 months before Gujarat’s assembly elections are due in December 2022.
Vijay Rupani met Governor Acharya Devvrat at Raj Bhavan on Saturday and submitted his resignation.
Addressing the press, Vijay Rupani thanked the central leadership of the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “I believe that now this journey of development of Gujarat should proceed with new enthusiasm and new energy under the leadership of the Prime Minister. Keeping this in mind, I am resigning from the responsibility of Chief Minister of Gujarat.”
Vijay Rupani said that he will continue to work as a BJP worker. He said, ‘Now whatever responsibility the party gives me, I will work with full responsibility and new energy under the leadership of the Prime Minister and under the guidance of the (BJP) National President.’
Who is in line to succeed Vijay Rupani as the CM of Gujarat?
All BJP MLAs have been asked to reach Gandhinagar at the earliest for the assembly meeting to be held on Saturday night or Sunday morning.
According to sources, in the name of Gujarat BJP President CR Patil and former Gujarat minister Gordhan Jadafia, BJP is considering to make Vijay Rupani as the Chief Minister of Gujarat.
Political career of Vijay Rupani
Vijay Rupani took oath as the 16th Chief Minister of Gujarat on 7 August 2016 following the resignation of Anandiben Patel. Rupani was the fourth Chief Minister of the state with the longest rule.
Before him, Narendra Modi ruled Gujarat for a period of 4,610 days. On 7 August 2021, Vijay Rupani became the second BJP Chief Minister after Narendra Modi to complete five years in Gujarat.
Rupani began his political career as a student leader in the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) in 1976. Over the decades, he has maintained his image as a soft-spoken, simple man. When he took power, the politically influential Patidar community in Gujarat staged a massive agitation demanding reservation.
The assembly elections in December 2017 came as the first major test for Rupani. The BJP won 99 seats out of 182 and secured a simple majority. The chief minister has been gearing up for the administration since returning to the seat in December 2017. He managed to win over the Patidar community by creating distrust in Hardik Patel, whose move to join the Congress came as a bonus to the BJP.