Gujarat cabinet: 27 ministers likely to take oath today

State BJP president CR Patil told reporters in Ahmedabad on Thursday morning that the induction of ministers would take place in the afternoon.

As many as 27 ministers are likely to be sworn into Bhupendra Patel’s cabinet on Thursday, a day after the induction was postponed due to alleged infighting in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Gujarat.

State BJP president CR Patil told reporters in Ahmedabad on Thursday morning that the induction of ministers would take place in the afternoon.

“There are no issues. Everything is under control,” Patil said when asked about differences within the party over induction. He also refused to speculate on who would be deputy chief minister or whether the post would even exist. Nitin Patel, a powerful Patidar leader, was deputy to Vijay Rupani who resigned as chief minister last Saturday.

According to reports, cabinet formation at Raj Bhavan was deferred on Wednesday after supporters of some BJP lawmakers arrived there and created a ruckus, tearing up party posters, after learning that their leader was not to be inducted as a minister. Local police said they were supporters of Limbdi MLA Kritisinh Rana.

A BJP legislator, who was a minister in Rupani government, said they protested when they learnt that their names were not on the list send to Governor’s house. “All senior ministers are being dropped and therefore, we had to raise our voice of protest,” the leader said.

On Thursday morning, he said, they expect the party to respect their seniority and induct some of them in the Cabinet. “We are waiting for a response from the party leadership,” he added.

By HT Correspondent

UPDATED ON SEP 16, 2021 11:35 AM IST