Gandhinagar: In a major political reshuffle ahead of the 2027 Gujarat Assembly elections, Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on Friday inducted 19 new ministers and retained six members from his previous Cabinet, including Harsh Sanghavi, who has been elevated to the post of Deputy Chief Minister. Among the new faces, Rivaba Jadeja, wife of cricketer Ravindra Jadeja, made a notable entry as Minister of State (MoS).
With the expansion, the total strength of the Gujarat council of ministers has increased to 26, including the Chief Minister, up from 17 earlier. Under constitutional provisions, Gujarat can have a maximum of 27 ministers, which is 15% of its 182-member Assembly.
The oath of office and secrecy was administered by Governor Acharya Devvrat at the Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar. The Cabinet rejig comes two years before the Assembly polls and just months ahead of local body elections, signalling a strategic political move by the BJP government.
Harsh Sanghavi, the MLA from Majura in Surat and former Minister of State for Home, has now become the Deputy Chief Minister — a position revived after four years. The last deputy CM was Nitin Patel during Vijay Rupani’s tenure, before the post was scrapped in 2021.
Out of the six retained ministers, Kanubhai Patel, Rushikesh Patel, and Kunvarji Bavalia have continued as Cabinet ministers, while Sanghavi, Praful Pansheriya, and Purshottam Solanki held MoS positions earlier. Only Sanghavi and Pansheriya took fresh oaths in the new Cabinet, with Pansheriya being given independent charge.
Prominent inclusions in the new team include Jitu Vaghani, Arjun Modhwadia, and Manisha Vakil. Modhwadia, once the Gujarat Congress president and Leader of Opposition, joined the BJP in March 2024 and has now been sworn in as a Cabinet minister, marking a significant political shift.
A surprise inclusion was Rivaba Jadeja, who took oath as MoS in the presence of her husband, cricketer Ravindra Jadeja, and their daughter. Her entry symbolizes the BJP’s effort to bring popular public figures into mainstream politics.
Of the 25 ministers now in the council, nine hold Cabinet rank, three are Ministers of State with independent charge, and 13 are Ministers of State. The new Cabinet also reflects increased female representation, with three women ministers compared to one in the previous team.
Meanwhile, 10 ministers, including senior leaders such as Balwantsinh Rajput (Industries), Raghavji Patel (Agriculture), Bhanuben Babariya (Social Justice & Empowerment), and Mulu Bera (Forest & Environment), were dropped in the reshuffle.
Earlier this month, Jagdish Vishwakarma, who served as MoS in the previous Cabinet, was appointed the new state BJP president, replacing Union Minister C.R. Paatil. Following the party’s ‘one person, one post’ policy, Vishwakarma was not included in the new council.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, who began his second term on December 12, 2022, appears to be balancing experience with fresh talent as the BJP gears up for the 2027 state elections and seeks to consolidate its dominance across Gujarat’s political and social spectrum.
