Gujarat: Bhupendra Patel takes oath as CM, Amit Shah attends ceremony

Bhupendra Patel on Monday took oath as the 17th chief minister of Gujarat. Patel was announced the new CM on Sunday after surprise resignation of Vijay Rupani on Saturday.

The BJP’s choice of the 59-year-old as the chief minister at a legislative party meeting on Sunday came as a surprise for many as the low-profile, first-time legislator was not seen to be among the top contenders for the post.

Gujarat Governor Acharya Devvrat administered Bhupendra Patel oath to office at 2:20pm.

Also Read: Who is Bhupendra Patel?: All you need to know about the new Gujarat CM

Union home minister Amit Shah attended the swearing-in ceremony of Bhupendra Patel in Gandhinagar as Gujarat CM alongwith several senior BJP leaders and chief ministers.

Bhupendra Patel is a first time MLA from Gujarat's Ghatlodiya. In 2017 he defeated Congress's Shashikant Patel by more than 1 lakh votes.

He belongs to the Patidar community, which the BJP is reportedly keen to appease ahead of next year's assembly elections