Vijay Rupani, the former chief minister of the Indian state of Gujarat, was among the dead after an Air India Boeing 787 crashed shortly after take-off from Ahmedabad’s Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport on Thursday.
He was 83 and was listed as the 12th passenger reportedly seated in the airplane’s business class compartment.
The Boeing 787-8 aircraft, bound for London, went down within minutes of take-off, claiming most souls on board.
Gujarat BJP President CR Patil mourned saying “Former chief minister Vijay Rupani has passed away. The BJP family is deeply saddened. May God grant peace to all the departed souls and give strength to the bereaved families.”
Rupani’s death comes nearly 60 years after Balwantrai Mehta, another former Gujarat CM, died in a plane crash in 1965.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several BJP leaders expressed shock and sorrow at the incident.
BJP MP Sambit Patra described Rupani’s death as “extremely painful and deeply shocking,” calling it an “irreparable loss for Indian politics.”
Punjab BJP President Sunil Jakhar remembered Rupani as a “gentleman politician,” while former Punjab CM Amarinder Singh praised his “unwavering commitment to public service.”
A tense atmosphere gripped Rupani’s Rajkot residence following initial reports of the crash, with neighbours gathering in silence, many visibly distressed.
Rupani served as Gujarat’s chief minister from August 2016 until September 2021, when he resigned ahead of the state assembly elections.
Born on 2 August 1956, in then-Burma (now Myanmar), Rupani’s family migrated to India during political unrest in the 1960s and settled in Rajkot.
He began his political career as a student activist with Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad and later joined the RSS. A long-time BJP member, he was imprisoned during Indira Gandhi-imposed national emergency and rose through party ranks before becoming chief minister.