Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani at Raj Bhavan in Gandhinagar where he submitted his resignation. Media has been called for briefing on urgent basis after the meeting.
It is unclear at this time what precipitated Rupani’s resignation.
Addressing the press following his unprecedented exit from the top post, Rupani said his resignation is in accordance to the “BJP’s tradition” of providing all party workers an equal opportunity.
“I am ready to serve in whichever the role the party assigns to me,” Rupani said, adding that he is committed to the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
On being asked under whose leadership the assembly elections would be contested by the BJP next year, Rupani said the party is guided by the central leadership of Modi.
Rupani’s resignation drew questions from the opposition, with Congress working president Hardik Patel claiming that it reflects the BJP’s lack of confidence in their own chief minister.
“If the BJP is claiming that their government has performed well over the past four years, what was the need for an overnight change in leadership,” Patel said, while speaking to a news channel.
Mr Rupani is the fourth BJP chief minister to step down in recent months; in July BS Yediyurappa resigned as Chief Minister of Karnataka in July and the double whammy in Uttarakhand, where Tirath Singh Rawat quit barely four months after replacing Trivendra Rawat.
