Ravindra Jadeja’s wife gets major responsibility as Gujarat government inducts 19 new faces

Indian cricketer Ravindra Jadeja's wife, Rivaba Jadeja, has been included in the Gujarat government led by Bhupendra Patel.

A major cabinet reshuffle took place in the Bhupendra Patel government of Gujarat on Friday (today). 26 new ministers took the oath of office in the presence of the Governor, including Rivaba Jadeja, wife of Indian cricketer Ravindra Jadeja. This reshuffle follows the collective resignation of the old cabinet, with approximately 19 new faces added. This has increased the cabinet's size to 27 members.

Minister in Three Years

Rivaba Jadeja is the BJP MLA from the Jamnagar North constituency and this will be her first term in the cabinet. She has been handed this significant responsibility just three years after entering politics, which is seen as part of the BJP's strategy to promote young leadership. In the cabinet, Harsh Sanghvi has been promoted to cabinet rank, while leaders such as Swaroopji Thakor, Pravinkumar Mali, Rushikesh Patel, Darshana Vaghela, Kunvarji Bavaliya, Arjun Modhwadia, Parshottam Solanki, Jitendra Vaghani, Prafull Pansheriya, and Kanubhai Desai have also been included.

Beginning of Political Journey

Rivaba Jadeja was born on September 5, 1990. She holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from Atmiya Institute of Technology and Science in Rajkot, Gujarat. She married Ravindra Jadeja on April 17, 2016, in a private ceremony with traditional rituals. Only close family members and select friends attended the wedding, and pictures from the ceremony went viral on social media.

Entered Politics in 2019

Rivaba's entry into politics occurred before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections when she formally joined the Bharatiya Janata Party. Prior to this, she was a member of the Karni Sena, an organisation of the Rajput community, and also served as the head of its women's wing. She is also a relative of senior Congress leader Hari Singh Solanki. Active in the Jamnagar-Saurashtra region, Rivaba was given a ticket from the Jamnagar North seat in the 2022 Gujarat Assembly elections, where she replaced former MLA Dharmendra Singh Jadeja.

Husband Ravindra's Support

In the 2022 elections, Rivaba defeated Aam Aadmi Party candidate Karshan Karmur by a significant margin of 53,570 votes. During the election campaign, Ravindra Jadeja himself appealed for votes for his wife, the impact of which was evident. Jamnagar being Ravindra Jadeja's hometown also contributed to strong local support. Following this victory, Rivaba became active in addressing regional issues after reaching the assembly.