| Gandhinagar – The BJP-led government in Gujarat announced a significant cabinet reshuffle today, October 17, 2025, with Harsh Sanghvi sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister. The oath was administered by Governor Acharya Devvrat at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar, in the presence of Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and BJP National President JP Nadda. This reshuffle resulted in 21 new ministers being sworn in, including one Deputy Chief Minister, five Cabinet rank ministers, three Ministers of State with independent charge, and 12 Ministers of State. Majura MLA Harsh Sanghavi, known for his organizational skills and youth appeal, was sworn in as the Deputy Chief Minister, reviving a post last held in 2021. At 40, he becomes the youngest to hold this post in Gujarat’s history. Previously Minister of State for Home, Sanghavi’s promotion reinforces BJP’s strategy to consolidate its youth and urban base, especially in South Gujarat. The new Cabinet included several familiar faces, with six ministers returning: Rishikesh Patel, Kanubhai Desai, Kunwarji Bavaliya, Praful Panseria, Parshottam Solanki and Sanghavi himself. Four ministers who retained their portfolios includes Rishikesh Patel, Kanubhai Desai, Kunwarji Bavaliya, and Parshottam Solanki (minister of state) and did not take the oath again since their positions remain unchanged. The new leaders who were inducted in the Cabinet today are Trikam Chhang, Swaroopji Thakor, Praveen Mali, PC Baranda, Darshana Vaghela, Kantilal Amritiya, Arjun Modhwadia, Pradyumn Vaja, Kaushik Vekaria, Jitendrabhai Vaghani, Ramanbhai Solanki, Kamleshbhai Patel, Sanjay Singh Mahida, Rameshbhai Katara, Prafull Panseria, Manisha Vakil, Ishwarsinh Patel, Dr Jayrambhai Gamit, and Nareshbhai Patel. The new cabinet’s caste composition featured eight ministers from OBC communities, six Patidars, four tribals, three Scheduled Castes, two Kshatriyas, and one each from the Brahmin and Jain (Laghumati) communities. Today’s reshuffle is the largest in Gujarat since September 2021, when the previous cabinet resigned on BJP high-command’s directives. Yesterday entire state cabinet, except Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, reportedly tendered its resignation. The cabinet restructuring comes just three years into the current government’s term and signals the BJP’s proactive approach as groundwork for the 2027 assembly polls, following trends set during the 2021 ministry-wide resignations that led to Patel’s initial ascension. The Gujarat Assembly, with 182 members, can accommodate a maximum of 27 ministers. This reshuffle nearly fills that quota, with 26 currently in the council of ministers. Bhupendra Patel assumed office as Gujarat Chief Minister for a second term on December 12, 2022 and recently marked the completion of five years in leadership. |