Ahmedabad: Vijay Rupani will remain the chief minister of Gujarat, senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley said on Friday. The elected MLAs of Gujarat BJP named Vijay Rupani and Nitin Patel as Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister respectively. Rupani is close BJP chief Amit Shah.

The BJP won 99 seats in the 182-seats-Assembly in Gujarat. The party’s strength, however, now 100 in the assembly as independent MLA Ratansinh Rathod from Lunawada has extended his support.

Amit Shah had earlier said during the party’s poll campaign that the electoral battle will be fought under Rupani’s leadership. Rupani is known to be close to Shah and is seen as caste-neutral, qualities which may tilt the scales in his favour.

With an eye on the 2019 general elections, a section in the party felt that the chief minister must be from the Patel community.

BJP, which was traditionally backed by the Patels, lost in key Patidar bastions in the recently concluded polls. PAAS convener Hardik Patel had actively campaigned in Gujarat, asking the Patidar community to vote out the BJP. The community has been demanding reservations for Patidars in jobs and education.