Press Trust of India
Ahmedabad, August 2: A day after Gujarat Chief Minister Anandiben Patel announced her decision to quit, speculations are rife on who will succeed her ahead of the state’s Assembly polls slated for 2017, overcoming the grim challenges on its way to maintain the winning spree of over two decades in the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Although the decision is to be taken at the “highest level” of the BJP leadership, the names doing the rounds as potential successor to Anandiben include the “number two” in the cabinet and health minister Nitin Patel, state BJP chief Vijay Rupani, Union minister Purshottam Rupala and Assembly speaker Ganpat Vasava, a tribal leader.
Some sections in the saffron party’s ranks also want BJP national president Amit Shah to take over the reins of the state to revive the party’s sagging fortunes.
Nitin Patel, a front runner for the chief minister’s post, when asked about his chances, responded with the stock reply that the central leadership will take the decision and everyone will accept it. When the question was put to Rupani, he said he will shoulder whatever responsibilities the party entrusts him with.
However, sources in the party said the final decision in this regard will be taken at the highest level and at present, one can not hazard a guess on who was the favourite. Anandiben’s resignation at this stage will give the new chief minister time of over one year to make his mark before the 2017 elections, scheduled to be held in the end of that year.
In a surprise move, Patel, who was in the midst of several challenges, announced her decision to step down Monday, saying it was time for the new leadership to take over as she was soon going to turn 75.
As soon as she made her decision public by taking to Facebook, Shah said in New Delhi that her successor will be chosen by the party’s parliamentary board, which, according to sources, is likely to meet Wednesday.
Under the leadership of Patel, who had been a minister in the BJP government since 1998 and was made chief minister in 2014, it is the first time in the post-Narendra Modi era that BJP in Gujarat has faced tough challenge from its opponents.
She had to put up with some upsets as BJP fared badly in the rural civic bodies polls in December 2015 and the Opposition Congress made handsome gains at the cost of BJP. She also had to face the fierce Patel community quota agitation, one of the factors which contributed to BJP losing in the rural local bodies polls, while retaining its hold on the urban areas.
Recently, the Dalit uprising after the Una thrashing incident had also dented BJP’s image.