india

Updated: Mar 09, 2019 14:23 IST

The Vijay Rupani government on Friday expanded the Gujarat cabinet by inducting three new ministers, including two Congress defectors and a senior BJP leader.

Within 24 hours of resigning as Congress MLA from Manavadar, Jawahar Chavda took oath of office and earned a berth in the cabinet. Jamnagar North MLA Dhavalsinh Jadeja, who had defected from the Congress in 2017 ahead of the Rajya Sabha elections, was inducted as a minister of state.

Yogesh Patel, a BJP veteran and seven-term MLA from Manjalpur in Vadodara district, was the only leader from central Gujarat to find a place in the expanded government. The other two represent the Saurashtra region.

This was the second cabinet expansion by the Rupani government in nine months to accommodate the defectors. In July 2018, veteran Koli leader Kunvarji Bavalia was given a cabinet berth. In December, he was reelected on a BJP ticket in the Jasdan bypoll.

Now, the total ministerial strength of the Rupani government is 24, including the chief minister.

“Chavda has been inducted as cabinet minister while Patel and Jadeja have been made ministers of state. The portfolio allocation will happen soon,” said deputy chief minister Nitin Patel.

On the other hand, Congress OBC leader and MLA Alpesh Thakor ended speculations of him joining the BJP. “I wanted to become a minister. But then I realized it will not solve the problems of the poor people of my community. That made me drop the decision to join the ruling party,” said Thakor.