Atishi was elected as the leader of AAP legislative party meeting, which was chaired by Kejriwal at his Delhi residence. (Photo: News18)
Atishi has been announced Arvind Kejriwal’s successor and will now be the Chief Minister of Delhi
Arvind Kejriwal on Tuesday resigned as the Delhi Chief Minister, making way for Atishi to take charge of the top post.
Atishi was elected as the leader of AAP legislative party meeting, which was chaired by Kejriwal at his Delhi residence. Atishi is the third woman Chief Minister of Delhi after Sheila Dikshit and Sushma Swaraj.
“Today Arvind Kejriwal has submitted his resignation. This is an emotional moment for the party and the people of Delhi. At the same time, the people of Delhi are resolving to make Arvind Kejriwal the chief minister again…Till the elections are not held, I will be looking after Delhi,” she said.
Kejriwal reached the LG Secretariat along with his Cabinet colleagues to resign on Tuesday afternoon, days after announcing his decision to quit from the post. Later, Atishi staked her claim to form a new government.
ATISHI THANKS KEJRIWAL, CALLS HIM HER ‘GURU’
Upon being named Delhi’s new Chief Minister, Atishi today termed Kejriwal as her “guru” and thanked him for “having faith” in her.
“It can only happen in the Aam Aadmi Party, and under the leadership of Arvind Kejriwal, that I was made an MLA and then a minister and now the Chief Minister. I am happy that I have become the Chief Minister, but sad that my elder brother, Arvind Kejriwal, will be resigning from his post. There is just one Chief Minister of Delhi – Arvind Kejriwal,” Atishi said.
#WATCH | Delhi: Atishi addresses the media for the first time after being elected as the leader of Delhi AAP legislative party and the new CM.She says, “First of all, I would like to thank the popular CM of Delhi, AAP national convener and my guru – Arvind Kejriwal. He gave me… pic.twitter.com/XN8oAZlTYu
— ANI (@ANI) September 17, 2024
“The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has conspired to create difficulties for Arvind Kejriwal,” she alleged.
“Arvind Kejriwal said that the decision of the Supreme Court (that he can continue being the Chief Minister) is not enough. He said that if only the people of Delhi reimpose faith in him, he will become the Chief Minister again,” Atishi said.
“The people of Delhi will today oath to make Arvind Kejriwal the Chief Minister, because he has given them a lot – free electricity, free water, free bus rides, and more, whereas the BJP, who is governing 22 states, has not given anything to the people,” she said.
WHEN KEJRIWAL ANNOUNCED HIS RESIGNATION
On September 13, Arvind Kejriwal was released from Tihar Jail, where he had been lodged for his alleged involvement in the Delhi liquor policy case. Nearly two days after his release, on Sunday, Kejriwal said he would resign as the Chief Minister within 48 hours.
He also sought early polls in Delhi, and vowed not to sit in the chief minister’s chair until people gave him a “certificate of honesty”.
On Monday, the AAP held a series of meetings as Kejriwal sought feedback from members of the political affairs committee, the party’s highest decision-making body, on his successor in one-on-one meetings at his official residence.
ATISHI’s POLITICAL CAREER
During the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Atishi was appointed the in-charge for East Delhi as an Aam Aadmi Party candidate. She lost to the BJP’s Gautam Gambhir by a margin of 4.77 lakh votes.
During the 2020 Delhi Legislative Assembly election, Atishi contested from the Kalkaji constituency of South Delhi. She defeated BJP candidate Dharambir Singh by 11,422 votes.
Later, she was inducted into the Delhi government as a Cabinet Minister, along with Saurabh Bharadwaj after the resignation of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Health Minister Satyender Jain.
