Atishi takes oath as Delhi Chief Minister

Atishi sworn in as Delhi's eighth Chief Minister, succeeding Arvind Kejriwal, vows to continue AAP's policies until elections.

Senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Atishi on Saturday (September 21, 2024) took oath as the eighth Chief Minister of Delhi after AAP’s national convenor Arvind Kejriwal resigned from the post on September 17 and declared that he will not sit on the Chief Minister’s chair until the people of Delhi give him a “certificate of honesty” and vote him back to power. Ms. Atishi, the third woman to hold the post, is likely to have a four-month term as Chief Minister as the Delhi Assembly election is scheduled for February 2025.

In her first press conference after taking oath, Ms. Atishi said that it was an emotional day for her as Mr. Kejriwal will not be the Chief Minister of Delhi and blamed the Bharatiya Janata Party for hatching a conspiracy against him by “implicating him in a false case”.

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“My job for the next four months is to ensure that those people of Delhi who have been troubled due to the conspiracies of the BJP get the facilities promised to them,” Ms. Atishi said.

She appealed to the people of the national capital to ensure that Mr. Kejriwal becomes the Chief Minister again so that the free services like free electricity and water continue and the BJP does not get an opportunity to stop them. “Now that Mr. Kejriwal is out of jail, he will work for the people of Delhi and not let the BJP stop any of the facilities they have been enjoying,” Ms. Atishi added.

Lieutenant-Governor V.K. Saxena who administered the on oath of office and secrecy to Ms. Atishi at a ceremony at Raj Bhawan also swore in her new Council of Ministers, comprising the old guard of Saurabh Bharadwaj, Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot, and Imran Hussain as well as Mukesh Ahlawat who is a new face. The ceremony was attended by Mr. Kejriwal former deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel, Leader of Opposition Vijender Gupta, BJP MPs, including Union Minister of State Harsh Malhotra, and Delhi Police Commissioner Sanjay Arora. The LG also approved the distribution of portfolios among the ministers with Ms. Atishi continuing to head 13 departments of the Delhi Government in addition to being the Chief Minister.

With Ms. Atishi taking over as Chief Minister, Mr. Kejriwal plans to plunge himself into campaign mode with the first public event, since his release from jail after the Supreme Court granted him bail in the probe linked to the Delhi Government’s Excise policy, to be held at Jantar Mantar on September 22.