From a suspended police constable to a stint in jail in a bank fraud; C R Paatil has had a remarkable tenure as the as Gujarat BJP President.
After a notable stint that lasted over five years, including more than two years on extension, Chandrakant Raghunath Paatil has stepped down as Gujarat BJP president. Paatil’s appointment as Gujarat BJP chief had surprised many at first. He was the first “non-Gujarati” to hold the post.
Known as CR, he soon became one of the party’s most influential leaders in the state. Originally from Jalgaon in Maharashtra, Paatil began his career as a police constable. He had spent many years working in Gujarat before his elevation. His rise was widely seen as being backed by Narendra Modi. Of late, his acrimoninous relationship with Home Minister Amit Shah has been whispered about in Gujarat.
Paatil officially took charge in July 2020. As reports highlighted, the Gujarat BJP then was coming to terms with the 2017 Assembly elections. The Patidar agitation impacted the party’s showing. It recorded an underwhelming 99 seats in the 182-member House.
To add to the challenge, his tenure began amid the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, when public dissatisfaction with the government was high.
Within months of assuming charge, in November 2020, Gujarat witnessed bypolls in eight Assembly constituencies vacated by defecting Congress MLAs — all of which were won by the BJP. Paatil would soon oversee a sweeping overhaul of the Gujarat Cabinet ahead of the 2022 Assembly elections, beginning with the replacement of the then Chief Minister, the late Vijay Rupani.
Many sitting MLAs were dropped in favour of new faces, and fresh age and tenure criteria were applied during ticket distribution for local body polls.
Under Paatil’s leadership, the BJP made bold changes without facing internal revolt or losing voter support.
In March 2021, the party won the local body elections. It took control of all six municipal corporations.
In October, the BJP captured the Congress stronghold of Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation. It won 41 out of 44 wards.
The 2022 Gujarat Assembly elections were a stern examination. The BJP cleared it with an emphatic win, bagging 156 seats, which was 85% of the Assembly.
Another pivotal point, as reports pointed out, came two years ago. When Paatil’s term ended in July 2023, he was given an extension to lead the party in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
That gamble worked. Despite losses elsewhere in India, the BJP won 25 out of 26 seats in Gujarat.
He was subsequently made Union Minister for Jal Shakti.
His exit as Gujarat BJP chief was expected, but the party found it hard to choose a replacement.
One of Patil’s hallmark contributions as state president was the introduction of ‘page committees’ across Gujarat. These committees were tasked with maintaining direct contact with committed party supporters listed on each page of the electoral roll. Modi, in a letter to the Gujarat BJP, expressed appreciation for this initiative. Patil also introduced the concept of a formal party mandate for local body elections and established a structured system to enhance communication between ministers, party workers, and the general public.
Among the candidates considered to succeed Patil is state minister Jagdish Vishwakarma, also known as Jagdish Panchal — an OBC leader and MLA from Ahmedabad. The next state BJP chief is expected to emerge through consensus.
Despite his successes, Patil’s tenure was not without controversy. The Gujarat Cattle Control in Urban Areas Bill, 2022, acknowledged as his initiative, had to be withdrawn following strong opposition from the Maldhari community. Similarly, a proposed interlinking of the Par, Tapi, and Narmada rivers, which he reportedly supported, was put on hold after protests from tribal groups.
In April 2021, Patil sparked another row during the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. At a time of acute shortage of the antiviral drug Remdesivir, he announced plans to distribute 5,000 vials to the needy from the Surat BJP office, a fact that media reports have duly highlighted.
There were also unexplained developments during his term, such as the removal of two influential state general secretaries, Bhargav Bhatt and Pradipsinh Vaghela. Their positions remain unfilled. His tenure has been controversial with allegations of money and muscle power at maximum display in Gujarat.
BJP functionaries describe him as the party’s best-ever state president. He is credited for introducing a “killer instinct” within the Gujarat unit and for effectively using data in poll management.
Of course, he was pragmatic too. The story goes that at a mock youth parliament event in Gandhinagar, Patil told students that before entering politics they should be financially secure. He said politics demands full-time work. For him, one should not assume they can do politics part‑time or alongside other jobs.
His methods were debatable. Yet his role in the party’s rise after a near embarrassment in the 2017 Assembly polls must be acknowledged.
Also Read: Jagdish Vishwakarma Is New Gujarat BJP President https://www.vibesofindia.com/jagdish-vishwakarma-is-new-gujarat-bjp-president/
