NEW DELHI: The frontrunner was the chosen one. In an expected turn of events, the AAP legislative party on Tuesday elected finance and education minister Atishi , 43, as its leader, paving the way for her to become the eighth chief minister of Delhi. Outgoing Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal later met lieutenant governor VK Saxena at Raj Niwas along with his council of ministers - Atishi, Gopal Rai, Kailash Gahlot, Saurabh Bharadwaj and Imran Hussain - to submit his resignation.
Chief minister -designate Atishi then submitted a letter to stake her claim to form govt. She will remain at the helm for a maximum of five months in this term if the assembly polls are held as per schedule in Feb 2025. "Now, Atishi steps up to lead Delhi till the upcoming elections, carrying the weight of both CM Arvind Kejriwal's vision and the national capital's future," said AAP in a statement.
AAP functionaries said an assembly session will be convened on Sept 26 and 27, and the new govt under Atishi will prove its majority. This is a mere formality, considering AAP's brute majority of 59 legislators in a 70-member House. Three MLAs have resigned from AAP in the past five months.
Leaving Raj Niwas, Atishi told reporters: "Had it been any other CM, he would have immediately sat on the CM's chair after coming out of jail. No one in the world would have taken a decision like Kejriwal ji (to step down)." "This is an emotional moment for the party and the people of Delhi.
At the same time, the people of Delhi.