Atishi to be Delhi’s new chief minister

Delhi minister Atishi will take over as Chief Minister after Arvind Kejriwal resigns from the top post after a meeting with Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena on Tuesday afternoon, reports NDTV.

The decision was taken at an Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) legislators’ meeting.

At the meeting of AAP MLAs on Tuesday, party leader Dilip Pandey proposed that Kejriwal decide on the chief minister face. When the AAP national convener proposed Atishi’s name, all AAP MLAs stood up and accepted it and Atishi was elected leader of the legislature party.

Atishi now holds key portfolios in the Delhi government such as Education and Public Works Department. An Oxford University alumnus and a Rhodes scholar, 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 Kejriwal and Sisodia were behind bars, Atishi articulated the party’s position at party events and media exchanges.

On August 15, 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 placed immense faith in Atishi.

Speaking to the media after the announcement, Atishi thanked her mentor Kejriwal. “Arvind Kejriwal has trusted me and given me this responsibility. I appeal to all people of Delhi to make your son, your brother Arvind Kejriwal the chief minister again because he is honest.”