India, Oct. 18 -- Nineteen new faces joined and six others kept their seats in the Gujarat council of ministers on Friday after a dramatic reshuffle that saw 11 lawmakers dropped as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) effected an administrative overhaul to prepare for the local body elections next year and state polls in 2027.

The oath-taking ceremony at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar was administered by governor Acharya Devvrat in the presence of BJP chief JP Nadda, Union ministers Mansukh Mandaviya and CR Patil, and Gujarat BJP chief Jagdish Vishwakarma. It came a day after all 16 members of the cabinet tendered their resignation to chief minister Bhupendra Patel.

"By preserving our ancient heritage and the lofty human values of Indian cu...