Harsh Sanghavi to be Dy CM
NEW DELHI: In a significant rejig of the Gujarat Council of Ministers, 25 MLAs were sworn in as ministers on Friday, a day after the entire Cabinet except the Chief Minister resigned. Majura MLA Harsh Sanghavi was sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister, while 24 others took oath as ministers in the CM Bhupendra Patel-led government. The ceremony took place at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar.
Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat administered the oath to 25 ministers.
Deputy Chief Minister Sanghavi earlier held the portfolio of Minister of State (MoS) for Home and is a three-time member of the Gujarat Legislative Assembly, representing the Majura Assembly constituency.
The Cabinet strength now stands at 26, including CM Bhupendra Patel. The move to bring in fresh faces to the Cabinet came just three years into the government’s formation, and two years ahead of the 2027 Legislative Assembly elections.
Six ministers from the previous Cabinet have been retained, as per ANI, while the new team features 19 fresh faces, injecting new energy into the government.
The Gujarat Cabinet reshuffle saw several ministers from the previous government retained in the new lineup. These include Rushikesh Patel, Harsh Sanghvi, Praful Pansheriya, KunvarjiBavaliya, Kanubhai Desai, Parshottam Solanki.
The new Gujarat cabinet includes several fresh faces, bringing in youth and regional representation. Among the new entrants are Naresh Patel (Gandevi MLA), Darshna Vaghela (Asarwa MLA and former Deputy Mayor of Ahmedabad), Pradyuman Vaja (Kodinar MLA and ex-Gujarat BJP SC Morcha chief), Kantilal Amrutiya (Morbi MLA), and Manisha Vakil (Vadodara City MLA).
Arjun Modhwadia, the Porbandar MLA who switched from Congress last year, and Jitu Vaghani, former Gujarat BJP chief and Bhavnagar MLA, have also been inducted.
Other new members include Kaushik Vekariya (Amreli MLA and BJP Deputy Chief Whip), Swarupji Thakor (Banaskantha MLA), TrikamChhanga (Anjar MLA), Jayram Gamit (Nizar MLA), and Rivaba Jadeja (Jamamgar North MLA and cricketer Ravindra Jadeja’s wife).
Besides, PC Baranda (Bhilloda MLA), Ramesh Katara (Dahod MLA), Ishwarsinh Patel (Ankleshwar MLA), Pravin Mali (Deesa MLA), Ramanbhai Solanki (Borsad MLA), Kamlesh Patel (Petlad MLA), and Sanjay Singh Mahida (Mahudha MLA) have been included as part of the new Cabinet.
On Thursday, all 16 ministers (excluding the Chief Minister) had resigned, paving the way for the new Cabinet formation.
The reshuffle is part of an administrative overhaul aimed at bringing in fresh and young faces, filling vacant offices in the Swarnim Sankul government complex, and re-energizing the administration.
Party sources said Gujarat BJP president Jagdish Vishwakarma played a key role in coordinating the resignations and implementing the leadership’s plan. The rejig is being viewed as a strategic move to infuse new energy into the government while maintaining caste and regional balance ahead of the 2027 Gujarat Assembly elections.
The shake-up also comes as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), led by Gopal Italia, continues to make inroads into the BJP’s Patidar stronghold, prompting the ruling party to test new political equations.