Former Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani passed away in the tragic crash of Air India flight AI171 near Ahmedabad. He was 68. Mr Rupani was en route to the UK to meet his wife Anjali and daughter Radhika, who were both in London. He was scheduled to return to India with his wife after the visit.
Vijay Rupani served as Gujarat’s Chief Minister from 7 August 2016 to 11 September 2021. He was born on 2 August 1956 in Yangon (formerly Rangoon), Myanmar. His parents, Mayaben and Ramaniklal Rupani, migrated to Rajkot in 1960. He was the youngest of seven siblings.
Mr Rupani completed his Bachelor of Arts from Dharmendrasinhji Arts College in Rajkot and earned an LLB degree from Saurashtra University. Early in his career, he worked as a stockbroker alongside his father. He joined the Jan Sangh in 1971 and was imprisoned for 11 months during the Emergency.
A committed member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and later the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he was elected as a municipal councillor in Rajkot in 1986. He held several key positions in Gujarat politics, including Chairman of Gujarat Tourism. From 2006 to 2012, he served as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha.
In 2014, following the resignation of Vajubhai Vala from the Rajkot West assembly seat, Mr Rupani won the seat with a significant margin. He later served as a minister under Chief Minister Anandiben Patel and went on to become Gujarat BJP president.
On 7 August 2016, he took oath as the Chief Minister of Gujarat and led the state for nearly five years. Known for his clean and controversy-free political image, Mr Rupani was considered a trusted leader close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He stepped down from his post at the party’s request without protest.
In personal life, he is survived by his wife Anjali, son Rishabh (an engineer), and daughter Radhika. The couple lost their youngest son, Pujit, in an accident and later established a memorial trust in his name for public service initiatives.
Until recently, Mr Rupani was serving as the BJP in-charge for Punjab and Chandigarh. His untimely demise brings back memories of another aviation tragedy involving a Gujarat Chief Minister-Balwantrai Mehta, who died in a 1965 air crash when his aircraft was shot down during the India-Pakistan war. Other Indian CMs, such as Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in 2009 and Dorjee Khandu in 2011, also lost their lives in air accidents.
Vijay Rupani’s political journey was largely smooth, principled, and people-focused. His sudden passing is not just a loss to Gujarat or the BJP, but a significant blow to Indian public life.
