Will work unflaggingly for the downtrodden and needy: Gujarat CM Vijay Rupani

Gandhinagar: Gujarat Chief Minister Vijay Rupani said on Tuesday that the oath for the office was an assurance and commitment to work for the downtrodden and the needy.

He tweeted, "It's not merely an oath for the office or word of solemn promise but an assurance, determination and commitment to work unflaggingly for the downtrodden and the needy. May God be with us."

It's not merely an oath for the office or word of solemn promise but an assurance, determination & commitment to work unflaggingly for the downtrodden & needy. May God be with us. pic.twitter.com/ftyYunD3zW — Vijay Rupani (@vijayrupanibjp) December 26, 2017

Rupani also thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah and promised to "serve the people of Gujarat with renewed passion and dedication."

Thanks a lot Shri @narendramodi ji for your kind words. #TeamGujarat shall leave no stone unturned to carry forward your legacy of good governance. https://t.co/Pd19Skqrp8

— Vijay Rupani (@vijayrupanibjp) December 26, 2017

Thank you very much @AmitShah ji. You are a big source of inspiration for me and we will give our best under your leadership & guidance. https://t.co/xqWTPdNxbB — Vijay Rupani (@vijayrupanibjp) December 26, 2017

Rupani took office as Gujarat CM on Tuesday for a second straight term at a glittering ceremony attended by PM Modi and a galaxy of BJP leaders. He was sworn-in by Governor OP Kohli at the head of a 19-member Council of Ministers.

Nitin Patel, who was elected the deputy leader of the BJP legislature party on Friday, was also administered the oath of office and secrecy by Kohli and would be the deputy CM.

વડાપ્રધાનશ્રી @narendramodi જી, શ્રી @AmitShah જી, શ્રી @jitu_vaghani જી,
18 રાજ્યના મુખ્યમંત્રી અને ઉપમુખ્યમંત્રીશ્રીઓ અને સાધુ-સંતોની ઉપસ્થિતિમાં રાજ્યપાલશ્રી ઓ.પી.કોહલીજીએ શ્રી @vijayrupanibjp જીને, શ્રી @Nitinbhai_Patel જીને અને મંત્રીમંડળને શપથ ગ્રહણ કરાવ્યા તેની તસ્વીરી ઝલક pic.twitter.com/gVISoDnXEy — BJP Gujarat (@BJP4Gujarat) December 26, 2017

Besides Patel, other Cabinet ministers are: Bhupendrasinh Chudasama, RC Faldu, Kaushik Patel, Saurabh Patel, Ganpatsinh Vasava, Jayesh Radadiya, Dilip Thakor and Ishwar Parmar.

The MoS who took oath are - Pradipsinh Jadeja, Parbat Patel, Jaydrathsinh Parmar, Raman Patkar, Parsottam Solanki, Ishwarsinh Patel, Vasan Ahir, Kishor Kanani, Bachubhai Khabad and Vibhavariben Dave.

In attendance were members of the Modi Cabinet, BJP chief, veteran leader LK Advani, CMs of BJP-ruled states as also Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Rajnath Singh, besides Yogi Adityanath, Devendra Fadnavis, and Raman Singh - CMs of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh too attended the function.

Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who had two engagements in Bhopal, did not attend the ceremony but met Rupani at his residence before flying back.

Conspicuous by their presence were two former warhorses of the BJP - Keshubhai Patel and Shankarsinh Vaghela.

(With PTI inputs)