Vijay Rupani Resigns LIVE Updates: BJP Legislature Party to Meet Today to Pick Replacement

Vijay Rupani Resigns LIVE Updates: Union ministers Pralhad Joshi and Narendra Singh Tomar are likely to visit Gujarat on Sunday as the BJP’s central observers to a meeting of the legislature party to choose the new chief minister following Vijay Rupani’s resignation on Saturday, sources said. Rupani’s resignation came 15 months before the election to the 182-member Assembly that is due in December 2022. Rupani (65), the fourth chief minister to demit office in BJP-ruled states during the coronavirus pandemic, was sworn in as chief minister in December 2017. BJP’s general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh and Gujarat state unit in-charge Bhupender Yadav met party functionaries soon after Rupani announced his resignation. Party sources said the issue of Rupani’s successor will be discussed in the legislature party meeting likely to be held on Sunday.

Here are the latest updates on the political churning in Gujarat:

• Union home minister Amit Shah may join the legislature party meeting along with central observers, Gujarat BJP spokesperson Yamal Vyas said according to news agency PTI.

• Rupani did a lot of development work as chief minister and took Gujarat to new heights, Vyas said. “It is a common process in the BJP… He will be given a new responsibility. He was earlier state president, then became chief minister, and now he will take up a new responsibility,” he added.

• Rupani, a Jain leader, replaced Anandiben Patel in 2016 after the agitation by the politically powerful Patidar community demanding to be brought under the ambit of reservation. He was sworn in for a second term after the party won the 2017 assembly elections even though there were reservations among state leaders on his elevation. He is MLA from Rajkot West seat in Gujarat. The BJP won 99 seats and Congress 77 in the last Gujarat assembly elections.

• Among the names doing the rounds for his replacement are Nitin Patel, Mansukh Mandaviya and Parshottam Rupala.

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