A day after Arvind Kejriwal sent shockwaves across political circles saying that he would step down as the Chief Minister of Delhi, the AAP chief will meet Lieutenant Governor (LG) Vinai Kumar Saxena at 4.30 pm on Tuesday, during which he is likely to tender his resignation. Saxena has given him an appointment for a meeting at 4:30 pm on Tuesday. AAP had earlier said Kejriwal sought time for a meeting with the Lieutenant Governor. Regarding the final decision over the New Delhi CM, the AAP legislative party meeting will be held on Tuesday at CM’s house.
Meanwhile, the AAP’s Political Affairs Committee (PAC) deliberated on the selection of the next chief ministerial candidate and the composition of the Delhi cabinet at Chief Minister’s residence. The committee also reviewed strategies for the upcoming Haryana Assembly elections, as the party aims to broaden its political presence in the neighbouring state. Kejriwal held one-on-one talks with leaders of the Public Affairs Committee of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for their feedback on who should be the next Chief Minister of the national capital.
“During the meeting, he (Kejriwal) sought one on one feedback from each leader on his replacement. Tomorrow, the legislative party meeting is there and this discussion will go into the second round,” Bharadwaj said after the meeting. Among those who attended the PAC meeting were Kejriwal, former deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Rajya Sabha MPs Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chaddha and five city cabinet Ministers.
“Today is a holiday and tomorrow is the first working day of the week. He will tender his resignation tomorrow to Lt Governor and after the resignation is accepted, a meeting of party MLAs will be held to decide on the new name,” he said at a press conference in the afternoon. “Saying anything right now will be assessment,” said Bharadwaj.
AAP leader also said the AAP has said it has put the ball in BJP’s court by demanding early elections in Delhi in November, and now it is up to the Opposition party to decide whether it was prepared to face Kejriwal.
Earlier in the day, Kejriwal held a series of meetings with his close confidantes at his residence including Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha for over an hour where they discussed the probables for the Delhi Chief Minister’s post and its impact on the upcoming Haryana polls. Sisodia did not speak to the media while leaving.
Since Kejriwal’s surprise resignation decision on Sunday, Delhi Ministers Atishi, Gopal Rai, Saurabh Bharadwaj, Kailash Gahlot, some MLAs from the reserved category, including Deputy Speaker of Delhi Assembly Rakhi Birla, as well as the AAP supremo’s wife Sunita Kejriwal, were making the rounds as probables for the post. Ruling out the possibility of Sisodia taking over, Kejriwal said someone from the AAP will take his place until polls are held. This effectively means that the top leaders of AAP are not in the race for the Chief Minister’s post. Even though this Chief Ministerial stint will only be for a few months, the AAP leadership would be looking to choose a prominent leader who can articulate the party’s position on key issues and has wide acceptability among the party ranks.
Assembly polls in Delhi are due in February next year, even though Kejriwal also demanded that the election be held in November along with the Maharashtra polls.
The main opposition BJP has scoffed at Kejriwal’s announcement. Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva has said Kejriwal is saying the people should decide if he should be Chief Minister. “The people have announced their verdict three months back (during Lok Sabha polls). You had roamed Delhi streets and asked for votes. The people gave their answer and put you in your place,” he said.
The Congress, which contested the general election in Delhi in alliance with AAP, termed the AAP leader’s move a political stunt. “It would have been better if he had resigned when Delhi was facing floods and drinking water shortage. I hope Delhi soon gets a new Chief Minister who can go to his office and sign files,” said Delhi Congress chief Devendra Yadav.
