Atishi takes oath as Delhi CM, replaces Arvind Kejriwal

Atishi becomes the third woman CM of Delhi

Atishi was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Delhi on Saturday along with her new Council of Ministers during a ceremony at the Raj Niwas.

The party's newly announced Council of Ministers includes a fresh face, Sultanpur Majra MLA Mukesh Ahlawat, along with incumbent ministers Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot, Saurabh Bharadwaj, and Imran Hussain.

Atishi takes over the baton from Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal, who, in a surprise move resigned from the post after walking out from Tihar jail in a corruption case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. Before taking oath as the Chief Minister of Delhi, Atishi went to the residence of Kejriwal.

"I want to thank my guru and Delhi's son Arvind Kejriwal for giving me this responsibility," said Atishi after taking oath as the CM.

"Today, I have taken oath as CM but it is an emotional moment for us when Arvind Kejriwal is not the CM. Arvind Kejriwal changed the lives of people of Delhi," she added further.

Delhi govt portfolio allocation | CM Atishi will head the 13 existing departments (that she had, earlier) including Education, Finance, Power, Water. Saurabh Bharadwaj will take charge of eight departments including Health, Urban Development and Social Welfare. Gopal Rai will pic.twitter.com/EXhThhi9Jm

ANI (@ANI) September 21, 2024

On September 13, Kejriwal was granted bail by the Supreme Court, after more than five months behind bars. Two days after he was released, Kejriwal announced his decision to resign as the Chief Minister and said he would return to the post only after getting a "certificate of honesty" from Delhi people in the assembly polls.

Atishi (43) is Delhi's third female Chief Minister, following in the footsteps of Sushma Swaraj and Sheila Dikshit. As a prominent figure within the AAP, Atishi has been instrumental in improving education in Delhi's government-run schools, having served as an advisor to former education minister Manish Sisodia.

Atishi, in the previous Kejriwal administration, was responsible for a wide range of portfolios, including finance, revenue, public works department (PWD), power, and education.

The tenure of the Atishi government will be brief as the Assembly polls in Delhi are due in February next year.

Her government will have to fast-track and give nod to various pending policies and welfare schemes such as the Mukhyamantri Mahila Samman Yojana, Electric Vehicle Policy 2.0 and doorstep delivery of services among others.