As BJP is set for a victory in Gujarat, CM Bhupendra Patel will take oath as the 17th chief minister of the state on December 12 for his second term. The oath ceremony will be attended by PM Narendra Modi and Union Minister Amit Shah.
State BJP president C R Paatil on Thursday confirmed Patel's oath ceremony.
A dedicated party worker, who made his way up in state politics from the municipality level, Patel was a surprise choice for the top post when the BJP decided to effect a regime change, replacing the entire ministry a year before the elections.
Patel credited Prime Minister Narendra Modi for it and said the people of the state have rejected the anti-national elements in the Assembly election.
Addressing a press conference here, CM Patel said, "The people of Gujarat have once again reposed faith in Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP leadership. If the masses of Gujarat have elected the BJP, then we have to live up to their expectations."
"The people of Gujarat have rejected the anti-national elements in this election and have voted for the BJP's track record of development in the state," he said.
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Hitting out at the new poll-entrant Aam Aadmi Party for trying to demean the people of Gujarat with "dole" politics, Gujarat BJP President CR Paatil said, "The AAP never thought about Gujarati Asmita and was never able to connect with the psyche of the Gujarati people."
"All anti-Gujarati forces have been defeated...The Congress must introspect as to why they are losing public support," he said.
The saffron party, which has not lost a single Assembly election in the state since 1995, is all set for a landslide victory and has been leading in 156 seats out of 182 Assembly seats.
If the exit polls are to be believed, then BJP will break all the earlier records. It may end up even crossing the magic mark of Madhavsinh Solanki under whose leadership Congress won 149 seats in the 1985 elections in Gujarat.
Harsh Sanghvi, the Home Minister of Gujarat while showing gratitude to the people of the state said that this result shows the nationalist credentials of the Gujarati people. He also added that Modi-Shah 'Jodi' has again been proven to be the most workable one in Gujarat.
Meanwhile, Narendra Modi, who addressed 30 rallies in his home state, is expected to reach the BJP headquarters in Delhi around 6:30 pm and address the party workers following the victory in Gujarat.
The counting of votes in Gujarat began at 8:30 am on Thursday. The state went to polling on December 1 and December 5.
