Gujarat forms 26-member cabinet: Harsh Sanghavi as Deputy CM, Rivaba Jadeja joins, mix of new and old ministers
There are now 25 ministers in the BJP government in Gujarat after taking oath, which included Harsh Sanghavi as Deputy Chief Minister. And it was also a mix of new and returning ministers.
Aadrika Tayal 
New Delhi (India) October 17: A 25-member new cabinet of the Gujarat government was introduced on Friday. State Home Minister Harsh Sanghavi took oath as the deputy chief minister, and Rivaba Jadeja – cricketer Ravindra Jadeja's wife – was made a minister.
The Cabinet now has 26 members, including the Chief Minister. It is after 21 new Ministers have been sworn in.
Harsh Sanghavi elevated as Deputy Chief Minister
In the 2022 Assembly elections, Sanghavi emerged victorious against an AAP candidate with over one lakh votes. He was administered the oath of office as the deputy to Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel at Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar by Governor Acharya Devvrat.
With two years to go for the 2027 Assembly elections, it will bring in several new faces into the cabinet only three years into its term.
Six Returning Ministers
Six ministers who made a comeback in the new Cabinet include Rishikesh Patel, Kanubhai Desai, Kunwarji Bavaliya, Praful Panseria and Parshottam Solanki besides Sanghavi himself.
Four ministers, Rishikesh Patel, Kanubhai Desai, Kunwarji Bavaliya and Parshottam Solanki (minister of state), were sworn in a second time without taking oath again as their portion remained the same.
Cabinet balances caste and community representation
The new cabinet's caste profile was eight OBC, six Patidar, four tribal, three SCs, two Kshatriya and one each from the Brahmin and Jain (Laghumati) communities.
New Faces Introduced
Here are the new faces that featured in the Cabinet today: Trikam Chhang, Swaroopji Thakor, Praveen Mali, PC Baranda, Darshana Vaghela, Kantilal Amritiya Arjun Modhwadia,m Pradyumn Vaja,Kaushik Vekaria,Jitendrabhai Vaghani,Ramanbhai Solanki,Kamleshbhai Patel,Sanjay Sing Mahida,Rameshbhai Katara,Prafull Panseria,Manisha Vakil,Ishwarsinh PatelDr.Jayrambhai Gamit and Nareshbha.
The Chief Minister was the lone exception among the 16 ministers who did not tender their resignation on Thursday.
27 ministers are allowed in the 182-member assembly of Gujarat, which is pegged at 15% of its total strength. A previous council of ministers comprising 17 members included eight cabinet ministers and eight ministers of state.
