India, Oct. 16 -- Sixteen Gujarat ministers submitted their resignations to chief minister Bhupendra Patel on Thursday ahead of a cabinet reshuffle expected to be carried out at Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar on Friday, people familiar with the matter said.

A senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader said the ministers were told to submit their resignations by the afternoon to give the chief minister and the party leadership a free hand to carry out what has been described by a party leader as a "strategic reset" ahead of the local body elections and the 2027 assembly elections.

The outgoing council of ministers comprised eight cabinet-rank ministers and two ministers of state (independent charge) and six ministers of state.

Patel's ne...