New Delhi, Sep 21: Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, along with five cabinet ministers, took the oath of office on Saturday and requested people to ensure that her predecessor, Arvind Kejriwal, returns to the top post again.
Atishi also hit out at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for hatching a “conspiracy” against Kejriwal.
Addressing a press conference here soon after taking oath, Atishi said it is an “emotional day” for her as her “guru” and Delhi’s son Kejriwal will not continue to be the chief minister.
“It is an emotional moment for me as he will not be the chief minister. He understood the pain of every person. He ensured free treatment for people, worked to improve the lives of the students of government schools, brought the provision of free bus rides for women,” she said.
The people of Delhi need to make Kejriwal the chief minister again to ensure that the free services, including free electricity and water, continue, Atishi said, accusing the BJP of implicating the AAP national convenor in a false case and alleging that the saffron party tried everything to break him.
Lieuteant Governor V K Saxena administered the oath of office and secrecy to Atishi, who is Delhi’s third woman chief minister after the Congress’s Sheila Dikshit and the BJP’s Sushma Swaraj.
After taking oath as the eighth chief minister of Delhi, Atishi took Kejriwal’s blessings by touching his feet at the Raj Niwas. Former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel, Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Vijender Gupta and Police Commissioner Sanjay were among the guests at the event.
Atishi is the 17th woman to hold the chief minister’s post in independent India.
Taking to X, Saxena extended his best wishes to the new chief minister and her ministers and said, “May they work for the betterment of Delhi and its people.”
Among Atishi’s Council of Ministers, Saurabh Bharadwaj was the first to take oath, followed by Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot, Imran Hussain and Mukesh Ahlawat, a new entrant in the cabinet.
Atishi has retained the 13 portfolios she held in the Kejriwal government, including education, revenue, finance, power and PWD.
After being sworn in, Atishi sent a proposal for allocating work among her ministers to the LG, who gave his approval to it, officials said.
No major changes have been made in the ministers’ portfolios. New entrant Ahlawat has got the charge of the labour, SC and ST, employment and land and building departments.
Bharadwaj will retain his previous portfolios and also have charge of the social welfare department. His other portfolios include health, urban development, irrigation and tourism.
Bharadwaj will hold eight portfolios, the highest after Atishi. Rai has been given the charge of development, general administration department, environment and forest — portfolios he held in the Kejriwal government.
Gahlot also retained his previous portfolios — transport, home, administrative reforms, women and child development.
The new Delhi cabinet headed by Atishi has a long list of pending projects, schemes and new initiatives to be launched in the next few months, ahead of the Assembly polls due early next year.
Atishi will have to hit the ground running to accelerate the city government’s functioning and ensure that the flagship projects and schemes are back on track after those slowed down for months due to Kejriwal’s imprisonment in the excise policy case.
BJP MP from South Delhi Ramvir Singh Bidhuri said the Atishi government should fulfil the promises made by the AAP to people.
“The new government should give relief to the public by reducing the electricity and water tariffs. Property tax should be waived in rural Delhi. Besides, the Centre’s Ayushman Bharat scheme should be implemented in the capital,” Bidhuri said.
Extending his best wishes to Atishi, Delhi BJP president Virendra Sachdeva said she has been “unsuccessful as a minister” and the people of the city have no expectations from her government.
“With Atishi becoming the chief minister, only the face has changed, not the character of the government. Since the government remains the same, corruption, irresponsibility and chaos will persist,” Sachdeva alleged.
Meanwhile, the Delhi Police has provided a security cover to Atishi. According to the protocol, a chief minister is entitled to a Z-category security cover on the directions of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA). The Delhi Police deploys around 22 personnel in shifts to ensure the security of a Z-category protectee.
The Delhi ministers who took the oath of office on Saturday urged people to make Kejriwal the chief minister again after the Assembly polls due in February.
“The people of Delhi love Arvind Kejriwal. He was framed on false charges and then he resigned himself. Delhi’s public is unhappy about it. They have decided to re-elect Kejriwal as the chief minister after four months,” Hussain said.
Gahlot said they have only one “sankalp” (resolve) — to bring Kejriwal back as the chief minister after the Assembly polls.
“Arvind Kejriwal says we need to serve the people of Delhi as their brothers and sons. We need to go among people and take our (development) work from door to door,” Gahlot said after taking oath. (PTI)
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