Keshubhai Patel

Keshubhai Patel (born 24 July 1930) was Chief Minister of the Western State of Gujarat in India from March 1995 to October 1995 and from March 1998 to October 2001. He is a senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader in the state.He hails from the electorally significant Patel community which holds the key to government formations in Gujarat.In 2001, his party lost two key bye-elections which led to the arrival of Narendra Modi in Gujarat as CM. Since then he has been unhappy and has called for revolt.

In the 2007 State Elections, he urged his community to vote for change. He blessed the Congress Party and did not even cast his vote. But the result was a complete shock as Modi won a convincing victory with the party faring better in Patel's bastion of Saurashtra, indicating his loss of support even among his own people. His party served him a show cause notice for anti-party activities to which he is yet to reply.On September 21, 2006 Keshubhai's wife Leela Behn Patel died in their home in Ahmedabad after an electrical fire broke out in the house's exercise room. Keshubhai Patel was also a Rajya Sabha MP but has now retired from active politics.

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