In a significant political development, all 16 ministers in the Gujarat government, excluding Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, submitted their resignations on Thursday evening. The resignations were promptly accepted by CM Patel, paving the way for a comprehensive cabinet reshuffle scheduled for Friday.
This reshuffle marks the first major restructuring of Patel's administration since he took office in September 2021. The move is seen as part of the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) strategic preparations for upcoming local body elections. The resignations followed a high-level cabinet meeting chaired by Patel at the state secretariat in Gandhinagar, where Gujarat BJP president Jagadish Vishwakarma directed the ministers to step down to facilitate a full restructuring.
Gujarat's constitutional limit allows for up to 27 ministers, including the Chief Minister, providing ample room for expansion from the current 17-member cabinet. The new council of ministers is set to take the oath of office at 11:30 a.m. on October 17 at the Mahatma Mandir convention center in Gandhinagar. Governor Acharya Devvrat will administer the oaths, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president J.P. Nadda in attendance as chief guests.
Reports suggest that the reshuffle will see the induction of young and new leaders, replacing some of the current ministers. Preparations are underway for the swearing-in ceremony, and the names of the new ministers are expected to be announced later Thursday night or Friday morning. Those ministers who are not retained may be assigned important responsibilities within the party's state organization.
Notably, earlier this month, Jagdish Vishwakarma was appointed as the new state president of the BJP, leading to his resignation from his position as Minister of State for the Cooperative Department, in line with the party's "one person, one post" principle.
