New Delhi: Vijay Rupani has stepped down as the chief minister of Gujarat, after a ‘flurry of developments’. It is yet unclear what prompted this decision a year before the state goes to the polls.According to the Times of India, speaking to the media after submitting his resignation to governor Acharya Devvrat, Rupani dodged questions about the sudden decision. He said that a change of guard is natural in the BJP, thanking the party leadership for giving him the opportunity to serve as chief minister.

Rupani’s cabinet has also stepped down, according to NDTV. The news channel also reported that Mansukh Mandaviya, who was in July sworn in as the Union health minister, and deputy chief minister Nitin Patel could be possible replacements.

Gujarat goes to the polls next year, which could have played a role in Rupani’s exit. A change of leadership in Gujarat ahead of assembly polls has emerged as a political formula to contain anti-incumbency. In 2016, a year before the last assembly polls, Anandiben Patel was replaced by Rupani to contain the Patel community’s anger against the former’s handling of the Patidar agitation. Now, when Rupani faces similar anger for mishandling the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to unprecedented deaths in the state, the decision to remove him may be a strategic choice by the BJP again.Indeed, the saffron party has been struggling to find a suitable replacement for Narendra Modi, who served as chief minister of Gujarat for 13 years, since his election as prime minister.

Rupani is the third sitting BJP chief minister to step down in the recent past. Before him, Tirath Singh Rawat stepped down as Uttarakhand chief minister while B.S. Yediyurappa also resigned as Karnataka chief minister. Tirath Rawat’s resignation came just four months after he had replaced Trivendra Singh Rawat in the chief minister’s seat. In Assam, Sarbananda Sonowal was replaced by Himanta Biswa Sarma after the former completed his term. 

In several other BJP ruled states, like Manipur and Tripura, state units have demanded that the national leadership oversee a change in guard.