New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal will meet Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena tomorrow, September 17, at 4:30 pm to submit his resignation. The Lieutenant Governor's office has confirmed the meeting and stated that Kejriwal requested this time. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has also confirmed that Kejriwal will resign during this meeting.
With Kejriwal's resignation imminent, speculation is rife about who will succeed him as the new Chief Minister of Delhi. Potential candidates being discussed include AAP minister Atishi, his wife Sunita Kejriwal, Saurabh Bhardwaj, Kailash Gautam, and Gopal Rai. However, party sources suggest that Kejriwal might choose someone whose name has not yet been mentioned. On Monday, senior AAP leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia met with Kejriwal at his official residence to deliberate on the new Chief Minister. A meeting of the Political Affairs Committee of AAP has also been scheduled. Kejriwal's unexpected resignation announcement has prompted senior party leaders to decide on a successor before the Legislature Party meeting. The new Chief Minister’s name will be presented at the Legislature Party meeting for approval before it is officially announced.
Sources indicate that Arvind Kejriwal might consider Rakhi Birla as his successor instead of Atishi or Sunita Kejriwal. The rationale for selecting Rakhi Birla includes her potential to achieve multiple goals: appointing a woman as Chief Minister could send a strong message to half the population, and it could also play the Dalit card. Rakhi Birla, an MLA from Mangolpuri and the Deputy Speaker in the Assembly, was part of Kejriwal's cabinet in 2013, serving as Minister of Women and Child Welfare and Social Welfare. Although she lost in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections against BJP’s Udit Raj, she was the AAP candidate with the highest number of votes nationwide.
Recently, two prominent Dalit leaders from the party, Rajkumar Anand and Rajendra Pal Gautam, resigned, alleging that Dalits and backward classes were not receiving fair opportunities. Anand has joined the BJP, while Gautam has joined the Congress. Appointing Rakhi Birla as Chief Minister could help counterbalance the loss of these Dalit leaders and demonstrate that the party values loyalty and hard work. Additionally, Kejriwal may wish to avoid accusations of nepotism by not selecting his wife as Chief Minister.
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