New Delhi: First-time MLA Rekha Gupta will be the new chief minister of Delhi, the BJP announced on Wednesday.
She was chosen as the Leader of the House in the Delhi Assembly at the BJP legislature party meeting. The party has returned to power in Delhi after over 26 years, ending the 10-year rule of the Arvind Kejriwal-led AAP.
Accompanied by BJP leaders Ravi Shankar Prasad, O P Dhankar, Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva and others, Gupta (50) later met Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena and staked claim to form a government.
She and her Cabinet ministers will take the oath of office at the Ramlila Ground on Thursday. She will be the fourth woman chief minister of Delhi after Sushma Swaraj, Sheila Dikshit and Atishi.
Upon taking the oath, she will be the second incumbent woman chief minister of the country along with Mamata Banerjee. Also, she will be the only woman chief minister among the states being ruled by the BJP at present.
There was no official word from the party whether there would be a deputy chief minister in the BJP government. Party sources said representation will given to all communities in the Delhi cabinet.
Gupta defeated AAP candidate Bandana Kumari in the Shalimar Bagh seat by a margin of more than 29,000 votes in the February 5 Assembly polls.
All 48 newly elected BJP MLAs attended the legislature party meeting held in the presence of Central observers Ravi Shankar Prasad and O P Dhankar. Gupta’s name was proposed by senior party leaders Parvesh Verma, Vijender Gupta and Satish Upadhyay.
The announcement came 11 days after the results of the Delhi Assembly polls were declared on February 8.
Soon after the announcement, Gupta thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said she would work with full honesty, integrity and dedication for the welfare, empowerment and overall development of every resident of Delhi.
“I am fully committed to this important opportunity to take Delhi to new heights,” Gupta said in a post on X.
“I express my heartfelt gratitude to all the top leadership for trusting me and entrusting me with the responsibility of the post of chief minister. This trust and support of yours has given me new energy and inspiration.”
In the recent assembly polls, the BJP won 48 out of the 70 assembly seats while the AAP got 22 seats and the Congress drew a blank.
Gupta is a former president of the Delhi University Students’ Union (DUSU) and an ex-councillor.
Born in Haryana’s Julana, she is a BCom graduate from Delhi University’s Daulat Ram College. She later earned a law degree from Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut, and also practised as an advocate.
She began her political journey with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) at Delhi University’s Daulat Ram College in 1992. In 1995-96, she was the secretary of the Delhi University Students’ Union and was its president in 1996-97.
Gupta enjoys close ties with the RSS and is actively engaged with women-related matters. She is also the national vice president of BJP Mahila Morcha.
Around 50,000 people, including Prime Minister Modi, his cabinet colleagues and the chief minister of NDA-ruled states among others, will attend her oath-taking ceremony on Thursday. More than 25,000 security personnel will be deployed in the central, north, and New Delhi areas of the city for the event.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah congratulated Gupta, saying the BJP government under her leadership will work day and night to fulfil the expectations of the people of the national capital.
Outgoing Delhi Chief Minister Atishi and AAP supremo Arvind Kejriwal also congratulated Gupta. Atishi expressed hope that Gupta would fulfil the promises made by the BJP during the election campaign.
“I want to tell the new CM that the AAP will always stand with her for the development of Delhi. It’s good news that a woman is going to lead a state. At present, barring Mamata Banerjee in West Bengal, no woman is a chief minister. I also hope that Rekha Gupta will soon fulfil the BJP’s promise of providing Rs 2,500 to women,” she said.
Kejriwal, in a post on X, extended his best wishes to Gupta. “Many congratulations to Rekha Gupta ji on becoming the chief minister of Delhi. I hope she will fulfil all the promises made to the people of Delhi.
“We will support her in every effort for the development and welfare of the people of Delhi,” he wrote.
