GANDHINAGAR: With the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) registering a landslide victory in the Gujarat Assembly elections, Bhupendra Patel is all set to take oath for the second time as the Chief Minister.
The new chief minister of Gujarat will be sworn in on December 12 at 2 pm, state BJP chief CR Paatil said on Thursday as the party swept the Assembly polls with a record-breaking margin. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah will take part in the oath-taking ceremony.
According to the latest information from the Election Commission, BJP is poised to win 156 seats in the 182-member Gujarat Assembly, having already won 142 seats and leading in 14 seats. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has made its entry in the state Assembly, having won five seats. The party has increased its vote percentage to 12.82 per cent in an indication of its growing presence in the state. The Congress is set to suffer its worst electoral defeat in Gujarat, having won 16 seats and leading in one.
Patel was sworn in as the 17th Chief Minister of Gujarat on September 13, 2021. He was first elected as BJP legislative party leader on September 12, 2021. He began his political journey as a member in Memnagar municipality and got elected as MLA from Ghatlodia constituency (Ahmedabad) in the 2017 Gujarat assembly elections.
Breaking his own record, Patel once again won from Ghatlodia constituency by a staggering margin of 1,91,000 votes in this elections. This overwhelming majority of the BJP in Gujarat depicts the absolute faith of the people in Patel’s leadership.
Patel has vast experience in administration, having served as the chairman of the Standing Committee of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) and as a corporator for Thaltej ward from 2010 to 2015. He began his political career in 1995 when he was appointed as chairman of the Standing Committee of Memnagar municipality. He served the municipality for over a decade, becoming chairman of the local body during 1999-2000 and 2004-2006.
He also served as the vice-chairman of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation School Board between 2008 and 2010. Later on, he served as a corporator from Thaltej ward from 2010 to 2015. During this tenure, he served as chairman of the Standing Committee of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC).
In 2015, he was appointed as chairman of the Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority (AUDA). In 2017, Patel became a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for the first time, by winning the election from Ghatlodia constituency with a wide margin of 1,17,000 votes.
Born on July 15, 1962, in Ahmedabad, Patel holds a Diploma in Civil Engineering from Government Polytechnic, Ahmedabad. He is a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and an active member of Pandit Deendayal Library managed by RSS at Memnagar.
The BJP has created history in Gujarat with a landslide victory in the 2022 elections and its seventh consecutive win. It is the party’s largest win in Gujarat Assembly elections since the state’s formation in 1960. It is an important win for the BJP.
Traditionally, there has always been a strong contest between the BJP and Congress in Gujarat, but this time around, Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) entry made these elections an interesting one. AAP leader Arvind Kejriwal tried hard to woo the people of Gujarat with the promises of providing free electricity and water, Rs 1,000 per month for women and loan waiver for farmers. On the other hand, Congress also tried to attract voters with all kinds of sops.
The BJP, which has won its seventh straight election in Gujarat, is set to not only improve its own best record of 127 seats in 2002 0151 — the first election with Narendra Modi as chief minister — but the Congress tally of 149 seats in 1985. (ANI)