Jitu Vaghani, who became the youngest president of the state BJP in 2016 and led the party to electoral wins in the 2017 assembly election and 2019 general election, was not given any position after
C R Paatil
took over as state party chief. Vaghani’s detractors were jubilant as he was without a post in either the organization or government for over a year.
However, the two-time Patidar MLA from Bhavnagar West made an impressive comeback in active politics, being made the second-most important minister in the Bhupendra Patel government.
Inducted for the first time in government directly as a cabinet rank minister, Vaghani has been entrusted with the education, higher and technical education and science and technology portfolios.
Vaghani was appointed president of the state unit of the BJP in August 2016 even as the ruling BJP was grappling with the Patidar reservation stir and widespread protests by Dalits following the Una episode. BJP won the 2017 assembly election with a reduced majority as a section of Patidar vote bank got alienated from the BJP during the reservation stir.