Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Sept 16: Speculation is rife over the successor of Mr Arvind Kejriwal as the chief minister of Delhi after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supremo fixed an appointment with the Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena at 4.30 P.M. on Tuesday presumably to submit his resignation as the chief minister.
Mr Kejriwal, who was released on bail by the Supreme Court on Friday nut barred him from functioning as the chief minister had at a party meeting on Sunday announced his decision to quit the office and stated that his successor would be from amongst a party sitting member of the state Assembly and the name would be finalised at a meeting of the legislature party in a couple of days.
During his announcement, Mr Kejriwal had also counted his erstwhile deputy Manish Sisodia, who too is out on bail in the same Delhi liquor policy scam case, as his successor and had said he would return as the chief minister and Mr Sisodia as his deputy only after securing a “certificate of honesty” from the voters of Delhi in the next state Assembly elections due in February, 2025.
Mr Sisodia too, has said he will go to the people and return to the top office only after re-election. This effectively means that the top leaders of AAP are not in the race for the Chief Minister’s post. Mr Sisodia met Mr Kejriwal at his residence on Monday but did not speak to the media while leaving. It is likely that the two leaders spoke about the party’s Chief Minister choice.
The AAP had earlier said Kejriwal sought time for a meeting with the lieutenant governor and was likely to tender his resignation. The AAP supremo had said he would become chief minister and Manish Sisodia his deputy “only when people say we are honest.” “The chief minister has sought time from Saxena for a meeting on Tuesday. He is likely to tender his resignation,” the party said. Mr Kejriwal had said on Sunday he would resign within 48 hours and sought early polls in Delhi.
Assembly polls in Delhi are due in February next year, even though Mr Kejriwal yesterday demanded that the election be held in November along with the Maharashtra polls but the sources in the Election Commission of India has virtually ruled out advancing the Delhi polls by about four months.
Even though this Chief Ministerial stint will only be for a few months, the AAP leadership would be looking to choose as Mr Kejriwal’s successor a prominent leader who can articulate the party’s position on key issues and has wide acceptability among the party ranks.
Among the possible choices, the party sources said, the Delhi Atishi is being considered to be the front runner. Holding key portfolios such as education and PWD, Ms Atishi is one of the key contenders. An Oxford University alumnus and a Rhodes scholar, Ms Atishi has worked extensively in the AAP’s flagship exercise to overhaul education in Delhi’s schools. An MLA from Kalkaji, the 43-year-old became a minister after Mr Sisodia was arrested in a corruption case linked to Delhi’s now-scrapped liquor policy. When Mr Kejriwal and Mr Sisodia were behind bars, Atishi articulated the party’s position. On August 15, Mr Kejriwal chose her to hoist the tricolour at Delhi government’s Independence Day event. While Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena foiled the plan, it was clear that the AAP leadership places a lot of faith in Ms Atishi.
A three-time MLA from Greater Kailash, Saurabh Bhardwaj, is another close contender for the job. In the Kejriwal cabinet, he was holding portfolios such as vigilance and health. He, too, was named a minister after Mr Sisodia’s arrest in the liquor policy case. Mr Bhardwaj, who has worked as a software engineer in the past, was also a minister in Arvind Kejriwal’s 49-day government. He is also a national spokesperson of the AAP and was articulating the party’s position when its top leaders were in jail after being arrested by central agencies in corruption cases.
A lawyer by profession, Mr Kailash Gahlot is among the senior members of the AAP government in Delhi and holds key portfolios such as transport, finance and home affairs. The 50-year-old leader is MLA from Delhi’s Najafgarh constituency since 2015. An advocate who has practised in both Delhi High Court and Supreme Court, he has served as a member executive in the high court bar association between 2005 and 2007. He is considered to have more amicable relations with the LG who is constantly at loggerheads with Mr Kejriwal. To snub Mr Kejriwal and Ms Atishi, Mr Saxena had chosen Mr Gahlot to hoist the national flag on the Independence Day.
The party’s two Rajya Sabha members, Raghav Chadha and Sanjay Singh are also considered to be in the running. A member of the AAP’s national executive and political affairs committee, Mr Chadha is one of its top faces. Mr Chadha has earlier worked as a chartered accountant and has been in the AAP since its inception. He has been an MLA from Rajinder Nagar and played a key role in the AAP’s thumping victory in Punjab in the 2022 state polls. The 35-year-old is among the most prominent young politicians in the country and is known for articulating AAP’s position on key issues in Parliament.
Mr Singh is a Rajya Sabha MP since 2018, Sanjay Singh is one of the AAP’s most prominent faces known for his spirited speeches in Parliament. The 52-year-old leader holds a diploma in Mining Engineering. He is among the founder members of the party and is a member of its national executive and political affairs committee. He is also a regular in the party’s media interactions to articulate its position on key issues. Sanjay Singh was arrested in connection to a corruption case linked to the Delhi liquor policy case and is currently out on bail, like Mr Kejriwal and Mr Sisodia.