Anandiben Patel: News

Anandiben Patel is the ex-Chief Minister of Gujarat and the Governor of Uttar Pradesh as of 2021. She is an MSc postgraduate and started off as a teacher in the Mohinaba Kanya Vidyalaya in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. She eventually became the school's Principal and taught there for over three decades. During this time, Patel saved two girls from drowning in the Sardar Sarovar reservoir and received the President's bravery award for the act. This attracted Bharatiya Janata Party's attention, and she was brought into the party's fold. Patel was a Member of Rajya Sabha from 1994 to 1998, the year she contested her first Gujarat Assembly election and won from the Mandal constituency. She won the 2002 and 2007 state elections from the Patan constituency and, in 2012, won for the fourth time from the Ghatlodia constituency. Patel held key portfolios like Education and, later, Revenue and Urban Development. She became the first woman Chief Minister of Gujarat in 2014 when the then newly elected Prime Minister Narendra Modi vacated the CM's office. She served as the CM till 2016. Patel also served as the Governor of Chhattisgarh (2018-19) and the Governor of Madhya Pradesh (2018-19 and 2020-21). She was appointed as the Governor of Uttar Pradesh in July 2019.