Gujarat: Swearing-in of new Cabinet at 1.30 pm on Thursday

According to a tweet by the Gujarat CMO on Wednesday, the swearing-in ceremony of the new Gujarat Cabinet under Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel will be held at 1.30 pm on Thursday at the Raj Bhavan.

The BJP is banking on Patel, a Patidar, for electoral victory with the state scheduled to go to the polls next year.

A first time MLA from Ghatlodia (previously held by former Gujarat Chief Minister and current Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel), Bhupendra Patel had taken oath as the Chief Minister on Monday. He was unanimously elected as the BJP legislative party leader at the state BJP headquarters on Sunday.

There are speculations that Bhupendra Patel's Cabinet will have all new faces. It is also likely that younger MLAs will be inducted into the Cabinet.

All the current faces are likely to be dropped, according to sources. The proposed move has not gone well with everyone with the supporters of sitting ministers Dilip Thakor and Kunwarji Bawalia taking to the streets on Wednesday demanding their inclusion in the new Cabinet.

Ahead of the swearing-in on Thursday, state BJP chief C.R. Patil held back-to-back meetings at his residence in Gandhinagar on Wednesday.