Business career[edit]

Vijay Rupani is a partner in a trading firm Rasiklal & Sons, founded by his father. [8] He had worked as
a stock broker.[8]

Political career[edit]
Vijay Rupani started his career as student activist associated with Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi
Parishad (ABVP).[7] He joined Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and subsequently joined Jan
Sangh in 1971. He has been associated with Bharatiya Janta Party since its establishment.[6][7][10] He
was imprisoned for 11 months and was sent to the jails in Bhuj and Bhavnagar during
the Emergency in 1976.[7][10] He was a Pracharak of RSS from 1978 to 1981. He was elected as a
corporator of Rajkot Municipal Corporation (RMC) in 1987 and became the chairman of drainage
committee. He became the chairman of standing committee of RMC from 1988 to 1996. He was
again elected to RMC in 1995. He served as the mayor of Rajkot from 1996 to 1997. He became
BJP's Gujarat unit general secretary in 1998 and served as the chairman of manifesto committee
during chief ministership of Keshubhai Patel. He was appointed as a chairman of Gujarat Tourism in
2006. He was a member of Rajya Sabha from 2006 to 2012.[7][10] He served as BJP's Gujarat unit
general secretary four times and chairman of the Gujarat Municipal Finance Board in 2013 during
the chief ministership of Narendra Modi.[9][10][11]
In August 2014, when Vajubhai Vala, the incumbent speaker of Gujarat Legislative Assembly,
resigned as the MLA from Rajkot West,[12] Vijay Rupani was nominated by the BJP to contest his
vacant seat.[5] He won the bypoll on 19 October 2014 by a huge margin. [6][9][13]
He was inducted as minister in the first cabinet expansion by Chief Minister Anandiben Patel in
November 2014[14] and held the ministry of transport, water supply, labor and employment. [6][7][10]
On 19 February 2016, Rupani became the state BJP president, replacing R. C. Faldu.[9][10] He was the
BJP state president from February 2016 to August 2016. [15][16]