Who is Rivaba Jadeja, sworn in as minister in Gujarat’s 26-member Cabinet

Rivaba Jadeja

Rivaba Jadeja, wife of cricketer Ravindra Jadeja, has been inducted into the new 26-member Gujarat cabinet. The Jamnagar North MLA on Friday took oath at a ceremony held in Ahmedabad.

Other members of the restructured cabinet include Swaroopji Thakor, Pravenkumar Mali, Rushikesh Patel, Darshna Waghela, Kunvarji Bavaliya, Arjun Modhwadia, Parshottam Solanki, Jitendra Waghani, Praful Pansheriya, Harsh Sanghavi, Kanubhai Desa, among others.

A day ahead of the planned cabinet expansion in Gujarat, all 16 ministers except chief minister Bhupendra Patel tendered their resignations.

Who is Rivaba Jadeja, part of the new Gujarat cabinet?

-Rivaba Ravindrasinh Jadeja, wife of cricketer Ravindra Jadeja, represents the Jamnagar North constituency in the Gujarat Legislative Assembly as a BJP MLA.

-Born on September 5, 1990, Rivaba studied mechanical engineering in Gujarat’s Rajkot, at the Atmiya Institute of Technology and Science. She got married to Ravindra Jadeja in 2016 and the couple has a daughter.

-Hari Singh Solanki, a veteran Congress leader, is reportedly related to Rivaba. She previously served as president of the Rajput community group Karni Sena, heading its women’s wing. Ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, she formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party.

-Rivaba has been actively engaging with the Jamnagar-Saurashtra region, travelling across villages in the area over the past few months.

The induction of Rivaba Jadeja stands out as a key move by the BJP to showcase new leadership and maintain regional balance in the run-up to the 2027 Assembly elections.

Gujarat cabinet

Gujarat can have a maximum of 27 ministers (15 per cent of the 182-member assembly).

Previously, the Gujarat council of ministers comprised a total of 17 (including the chief minister) ministers, with eight being cabinet ministers and eight being ministers of state.

Earlier this month, MoS in the Gujarat government, Jagdish Vishwakarma, became the new president of the Bharatiya Janata Party's state unit, replacing Union minister CR Paatil.